What I Hear About You
by thunder2010
Summary: After a rather emotional summer, Kitty is back with the rest of the X-men. Everything seems to be the same as she left it, except for Lance who wants to shake up her world. She's sure he's only befriending her because the BrotherHood is planning an attack on the X-men, but he's determined to convince her he's not. Loosely based off of the song "What I Hear About You"
1. Chapter 1

What I Hear About You

**A/N:**If you read the summary you saw that the story is based loosely on Jessie Daniel's song "What I Hear About You". At the beginning of each chapter is a lyric which pertains to the chapter. You don't have to listen to the song, but it would be a bit of a heads up as to where this story will go.

Also I claim no rights to the song or this TV show. This is purely for fun.

ONE

_I've tried to tune it out_

Kitty passed by the gym doors and frowned at the graffiti she saw especially because she knew who was responsible for it: The BrotherHood. Looks like just because it was a new year they were not planning on changing.

"Hey there, pretty Kitty." A voice purred in her ear as Pietro and the BorhterHood she had just been thinking of shouldered past her.

Kitty narrowed her eyes at then but continued on her way. This was her third year of high school and the past two had been difficult trying to get used to balancing X-men life with her normal life but now she had practically gotten a hand on it. She planned to finish high school with grades that would make her parents proud – she wanted to move on eventually from this small town. And she would not let those idiots cause any trouble for her.

She made her way to her first class of the day: AP Biology and sat down behind Rogue who was already conversing with someone. The rest of the class filed in but the seat next to Kitty was left empty. AP Biology was rarely a class that juniors took but Kitty thought it might be necessary so she convinced all of her friends to take the entrance test with her so that she would have some friends. However, only Rogue and she had passed the test, but after spending a summer away the two weren't as close as they used to be. And it seemed that Rogue had been spending the summer making friends, Kitty thought as Rogue smiled flirtatiously at the upperclassmen boy next to her.

Class started as usual, and Kitty's resolve to finish high school with flying colors began to waver. Their teacher had a boring voice and Kitty yawned, wondering if school really was the top priority. She didn't really have to go to college did she? _Maybe Professor X could just like, help me out when I need to go look for a job._ She thought lazily.

Suddenly the door banged open and a boy with sloppy hair strolled in taking the seat beside Kitty. The teacher rolled her eyes but continued knowing the boy was a regular trouble maker. Kitty stared at the boy's ripped jeans and motorcycle gloves and knew exactly who it was. Lance – aka Avalanche in the BrotherHood.

"Just couldn't find another seat could you?" she sulked.

Lance looked at her and smirked. "You looked like you were having so much fun, I just had to join you." Kitty just shook her head and looked away, resolving next time to sit somewhere else. "So what class is this anyway?" he asked, suddenly grabbing her notebook.

"Give me that back!" Kitty hissed trying to reach around his body.

"Ap biology? What's 'ap' mean?" he asked, tossing the notebook back. Unfortunately it landed on the floor and Kitty huffed, getting up to retrieve it. "That's AP you dimwit. As in advanced placement."

Lance sighed and slumped in his chair, deciding this was going to be just another boring class. Honestly he did not even know why he still went to school.

"Are you sure you're even supposed to be in this class?" Kitty asked him.

He shrugged. "Doesn't matter because here I am and that," he said pointing to an upperclassmen whom Kitty did not know. "Is the reason why I am staying."

The bell suddenly rang and everybody rushed to file out of the room and Kitty watched as Lance pushed people around in order to reach the girl he had been pointing at earlier. When he got near he flashed the girl a smile and held the door open for her, eyeing her backside as she walked. Kitty shook her head and went to look for her other class.

"How was your first day back, guys?" Kurt asked as everyone piled in his car.

"Totally awesome!" Tamara sighed, waving to a boy.

"Boring as usual," Kitty quipped, eyeing her bag full of work.

"How come you didn't come today?" Bobby asked Kurt.

"The Professor needed me for something. You guys won't believe who I've been helping chase down today."

"What's up?" Rogue asked, jumping in the Jeep as Kurt sped out of the school.

"Sabertooth – me and Wolverine were chasing him practically all over town."

"No fair," Bobby whined. "How come you get to do all the exciting things while we were holed up all day?"

"Exciting? At least you guys didn't get your heads almost chopped off." Kurt exclaimed as they reached the institute. "Besides, I thought you guys were all looking forward to go back to school."

"I _was_." Bobby grumbled, eyeing Tamara who was furiously texting away on her phone.

"Well you'll get your dose of exciting, don't worry. Jean has something new prepared for us in the training room."

Suddenly all of the kids began cheering in the car and piled out, heading to the training area – eager to the challenge awaiting them. Kitty however, sighed. Training was going to kick her butt because she was stressed about all the schoolwork she had to do tonight. Not to mention the bruises she would have in the morning.

* * *

The next day was boring just like the previous day until Kitty reached lunch. She had been chatting with one of her friends about summer – well mostly her friend was talking because this summer had been a lousy one – when someone threw a milk carton above her head.

"FOOD FIGHT!" Someone yelled out and suddenly several milk cartons were being thrown over her head.

Kitty ducked and tried to make a race for the cafeteria doors along with several of others when someone's pizza hit her squarely in the back. She gasped in annoyance and turned to see a smug Lance throwing several pieces of pizza at people.

_What a jerk!_

Growling, Kitty reached for her own milk carton and threw it in his direction. Unfortunately instead of hitting the unruly boy, it hit an administrator who glared at Kitty. She yelped and quickly turned around trying to make a break for it. _So much for a good year, _she thought running away from the administrator who was hot on her heels. Before she could get far, she was blocked by students crowding the hallways.

"Young lady!" a rather large man dripping in milk yelled at her stepping in her path.

Kitty sighed as he pointed her in the direction of the Principal's Office. _Shit._

* * *

Lance rapped his knuckles against the desk to refrain from yawning again. He wanted to be out in the halls bothering the next poor soul that happened to turn the corner, but Principal Hyde had suggested he go to his class. When the AP Biology teacher began assigning lab partners, the door to the classroom opened and Kitty Pride walked in, smelling of pizza. Lance smirked, remembering how he had hit her perfectly in the cafeteria.

The girl had changed into a gym uniform and it seemed like she was very uncomfortable in it.

"I would appreciate if people would stop coming in so late!" the teacher huffed as Kitty took a seat at a random lab table.

Lance grinned and headed to the same table as her. "You smell like lunch," he laughed sitting beside her.

Kitty glared at him. "Yeah, like no thanks to you. And how did you manage not to get in trouble? I bet you started it."

Lance held up his hands in mock surrender. "I have no idea what you're talking about. But just as a warning I would avoid the downstairs floor next week." He said as the girl he had been sitting next to before approached the lab table.

"Can I join you guys?" she asked, eyes only on Lance.

"You can join me anytime, beautiful." Lance said.

Kitty sighed, wishing Rogue was here. Unfortunately though, her gothic friend had sprained her ankle during yesterday's training and probably was not coming back to class until the end of the week. Looks like she was stuck with an annoying member of the BrotherHood, and a popular senior who wanted to ignore Kitty's presence for the rest of the class. _Great, just great._

"You still don't drive?" A voice from beside her teased and Kitty looked up to see Lance with his motorcycle helmet in hand. Kitty stood up straighter trying to show him she was not intimidated. "I thought you X-men knew how to do everything."

Kitty knew he had a vendetta against some of the X-men but tried not to rise to his bait. She was not in the mood for a brawl. "What are you doing out here so late? Vandalizing more property on school grounds?"

Lance laughed, wondering how she knew him so well. "Not today," he lied. "Why are you out here?"

"I got detention for a food fight that I was not even responsible for." She said, eyeing him vehemently.

"Then why'd you get in trouble?"

"For throwing milk at an administrator." She said tiredly. She didn't really want to talk to Lance because she knew that he would spend his time insulting her but she had been waiting on Jean for over an hour and she was bored. But if this was the only company she was going to get, so be it.

As she expected he laughed in her face. He had a loud laugh that made lines around his face wrinkle and made Kitty forget that whenever the X-men were faced against the BrotherHood he was always the one with the frown. She liked his laugh.

"I was aiming for you though," she said smiling at the thought of an annoyed Lance with chocolate milk dripping all over him. Abruptly her phone began to chime and she saw that she had a text from Jean: Ran into some trouble. Can you ask a friend to drop you? – J.

Kitty frowned, looking around at the parking lot and seeing no one that would probably be able to help her out.

"Something wrong?" Lance asked, eyeing the girl's worried expression.

"I'm trying to figure out which direction I should walk to get home." She said distractedly heading towards the road.

"Walk? Do you need someone to drop you off?"

"Are you volunteering?" Kitty asked, eyeing his motorcycle helmet.

He shrugged. "Are you asking?"

Kitty looked at him and then back at the long road ahead. She really did not want to walk all the way but she also didn't trust Lance. She remembered the last time she saw him he was wreaking havoc at a football game. But without the rest of the BrotherHood around he may not hurt her.

"Alright," she said finally. "The institute is kind of far."

Lance nodded, "Wait here, I'll go get my bike."

When he finally arrived, Kitty was having second thoughts about getting on the bike. "How safe is this thing?" she asked nervously.

Lance rolled his eyes and revved the engine. "If you want to walk you can."

After some final thoughts of debate Kitty finally seceded and sat down behind him. "Make sure you keep your legs close to the vehicle." He said, turning around and putting his helmet on her. Kitty frowned and wrinkled her nose at the smell. He pulled her hands so they wrapped around his middle and Kitty was surprised at the muscle she felt. "Try not to fall off. I feel like your X-men will somehow blame me for it." He said speeding off.

Kitty struggled to hold on and wondered how he was so good at keeping the bike steady at a rather high speed. "Are you sure this is safe?" she asked as he zigzagged through the lanes.

"Somewhat," he yelled back. Alarmed, Kitty held onto him tighter praying she would make it home in one piece.

When they finally arrived outside of the rather large mansion, Kitty's legs felt like jelly. The lights were off in the mansion and Kitty assumed everyone else was off helping Jean with whatever "trouble" she had run into.

"Erm thanks," she said, turning back to Lance - who was looking up at the mansion in awe. When he spotted her looking at him, his expression immediately changed into a more playful one.

"You've got a harsh grip there." He said, rubbing his sides where Kitty had been squeezing.

"Well I didn't want to fall off."

Lance laughed. "Were you that afraid? I'm surprised you didn't crap your panties."

Kitty rolled her eyes and they both stood there awkwardly. _I wonder if I should invite him inside,_ she thought. "Uh, do you want to come in and get some water or something?"

He looked back up at the mansion and his expression became hard. "No," he said. "Wouldn't want your crazy friends to try to kill me again."

"They only went after you last time because you're always trying to pick a fight with Scott." She argued.

"Doesn't matter," he said, getting back on his motorcycle. "I'll see you around."

* * *

**A/N**: Hello wonderful readers! This is my first X-men evolution fic and I've loved these two characters from the very beginning. However, as I read some stories with this ship I found they weren't really my taste. So I wanted to add my idea to the mix. I plan for this story to be lighthearted, humorous, and a nice adventurous relationship between these two, so if you're looking for that this should be a fun journey :)

This story takes place as if Kitty and Lance had never become close but they do know each other and have fought against each other. Also the world knows about mutants but they don't really know about the mutants in the school. If you have any question about the setting feel free to ask :) I plan to update as early as one week so REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW and tell me what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

_But everybody's talking/About you_

Kitty Pride sat under the shade of the apple tree outside of school. She had woken up earlier than everyone at the institute which meant she got to ride with Logan here. Naturally, he had been silent the whole car ride and Kitty wished he had not. She wanted something to distract her from studying for her test this afternoon.

"Head's up!" Someone yelled and Kitty watched as seniors threw the football around.

They were all broad shouldered and full of muscles. Before she knew it, she was ogling the boys instead of studying. They threw the ball again but the guy at the receiving end did not catch it. There was a gust of wind and Kitty had an idea of where the ball was.

Once the bell rang, Kitty headed to her locker and was not surprised when she saw who was holding the football. "You shouldn't steal," Kitty smirked, phasing through the platinum haired boy and getting the ball.

Pietro frowned and turned around to face the-nuisance-with-an-attitude. "Who says it isn't mine?" he picked the ball out of her hands and shoved it in his locker.

"What? You think a closed door can stop me?" Kitty laughed.

"Bothering the X-men already?" Lance said, approaching the pair. "Isn't it a bit early in the morning for this?" For emphasis he yawned as he reached around Kitty to re-open the locker. Suddenly the girl was feeling a bit claustrophobic between the two guys. If there weren't several people around she would have loved to phase through one of them.

"Don't you have a cheerleader with a short skirt to be chasing?" Pietro glared at his friend.

"I need your AP Biology work," Lance said.

Kitty crossed her arms. "Forget it,"

"I wasn't talking to you, doll face." Lance plucked her forehead. "I was talking to lover-boy here."

Pietro bristled and shoved some papers at Lance. "I told you to quit calling me that." He ground out and turned to walk away without another word to the other two.

"Lover-boy?" Kitty questioned, but Lance shook his head and began to copy the work.

"Don't you ever do your work on time?" Kitty taunted.

Lance looked up at her. "Why don't you be a good Kitty and go find a nice little mouse to chase?" He waved his hands as if making a shoo-ing motion.

Kitty glared at him.

* * *

Later in AP Biology, Lance slumped his shoulders as Kitty arranged their materials for the class activity.

"What's with you?" Kitty asked, realizing his sullen attitude was just going to make the activity go slower.

"Lisa's sick." Lance said and watched as their teacher awkwardly arranged the materials at the front of the class. "Who's this dufus anyway?"

"Who's Lisa?"

"Our other lab partner," Lance said as if Kitty was dumb.

"Oh. And who's dufus?"

Lance gave her another condescending look. "The substitute with the wedgie,"

Kitty frowned but after one look at the substitute teacher, she giggled. "Poor guy," she said. "I would hate to be a high school teacher."

Lance watched as the skinny X-man doodled over her notes as the teacher began to talk. He thought all of the X-men were self involved brats who thought they owned the world but he supposed there could be one exception. Even though Kitty clearly did not trust him, she put up with him and didn't look down at him. Or maybe that was just because she was short.

"Here why don't you try it?" Kitty suggested, handing him the magnets so that he could learn meiosis.

Lance boredly shuffled around the magnets. He breezed through the process in his head and didn't glance much at his notebook.

"Are you sure there are five phases?" Kitty asked, nervously glancing at her notes.

Lance nodded. "Yeah, telophase is only described in a couple of sentences in the book but it is there."

Kitty looked at him with interest. "You like, actually read the textbook?"

Lance shrugged. "I occasionally take a look at the pictures."

Kitty gave him another look like she didn't believe him. "Okay, can you explain the second one again? Aren't there like specific key words Ms. Horn wants us to know?"

"Aren't they in your notes?" Lance asked. He didn't really want to stand here and do actual work. He wanted to grab the bathroom pass and roam the halls.

Kitty glanced at her notes sheepishly. "They aren't really my notes." She said and flipped through the notebook. Lance saw that it was full of material they hadn't covered yet. "It's Jean's old notebook." And Lance thought he was lazy. As if she knew what he was thinking, Kitty held her hands up feigning innocence. "I just don't have enough time to sit around taking notes."

"And she just let you take them? Isn't she the one always preaching about responsibilities and stuff?"

"Well, she didn't like, exactly give them to me… I kind of, just, helped myself to her old-"

Lance laughed at her nervousness. "Admit it, you stole her stuff."

Kitty glared at him, hoping Rogue wasn't anywhere in hearing range. "It's not like she uses it anyway," she grumbled. "And besides, I don't ever have any time to take my own notes. We're all busy at the institute."

"Busy with what?" Lance asked, finally ceasing his laughter.

Kitty shrugged. "Just cleaning, and gardening, and stuff." She trailed off vaguely.

Lance knew about what they did at the institute because he had been a part of it for one week, but hearing Kitty talk about it like it was something secretive stuck Lance as odd. He thought Kitty was a bit different from the rest – more open to him specifically, but as always he was never really a good judge of character.

"Right," Lance agreed, slumping his shoulders again. "Stuff," He wondered when Tyler would come back with the damned bathroom pass.

"So," Kitty said, trying to get his attention again. Similar to Lance, she wasn't in the mood to do actual work. "What was that you said to Pietro this morning? Lover-boy? What, does he like someone on the football team?" Kitty snickered.

Lance gave her an alarmed look. "No way!"

"Then?"

"He'd kill me if I say anything," Lance said and then laughed. "Then again, it would be funny."

"What would be funny?" Kitty asked, just as the teacher came to check on them.

"How come every other group has three team members?" The short substitute asked them. "And it's only you two at this table."

"The thing is, we aren't actually in this class." Lance said.

"Excuse me?" The substitute asked.

Kitty tried to say something, but Lance easily stepped in front of her. "Yeah, we just came in here to talk to some of our friends. I mean do we look like we're doing work you old man?"

The substitute gave them both alarmed looks and Kitty hit Lance with her notebook. "Sorry, ignore him. He's lying."

"I'm not lying. He is old!"

"Lance, if you don't shut up-"

By now the rest of the class was watching the small quarrel with interest. Most of them were laughing and others were whispering about the craziness of the whole situation.

"If you don't belong in this class, you have to leave." The substitute said.

"No," Kitty said with a nervous laugh. "Look. I belong in this class. I answered when you called roll! Go like check the roster or something."

Behind her, Lance tutted. "Kitty, why would I lie to the guy?"

The substitute teacher moved away and headed toward his desk. "You two can either leave quietly or I can call administrators to take you to the classes where you actually belong."

Immediately, Lance picked up his things. "You don't have to tell me twice old man. This class ain't that much fun anyway."

Kitty glared at him and threw his bag on the floor. "Stop fooling around! This lab is for a grade-"

"Yeah but it doesn't matter for us. We aren't in the class Kitty. Quit wasting time." Lance picked up his bag and headed for the door.

By now Kitty was losing her patience. "Get back here you idiot!" Then, she turned back to the teacher. "Look, ignore what he said. He's crazy. I'm serious when I say that I belong in this class."

"Miss," The teacher said. "I understand this is high school and to you all, everything might be a joke. But why can't you just leave calmly like your friend?"

"Because I do belong here! You can't kick me out for something dumb he's doing. Come on, just look at the attendance sheet."

After a brief hesitation, the teacher reached for his papers. "Okay, let me see your ID." Kitty sighed in relief and went to retrieve her ID from her pocket, but felt nothing in it. She patted herself down in a panicked frenzy. "Let me guess," The substitute said. "You don't have your school ID?"

Kitty sighed and hoped that Lance fell down a flight of stairs. "Looks like it. Come on, please don't be like this. My name is Kitty Pride, and I am on the attendance list. Just give me a grade on this assignment and collect my work. I swear I always have my ID."

Despite her smile, the teacher picked up his phone. "This is ridiculous behavior." He muttered as he dialed the number for the main office. "Your administrators will set you straight."

"Alright! Okay, I'm leaving!" Kitty said, quickly gathering her things before the teacher did anything else. The door slammed behind her and she stood in the quiet hallway by herself. Surprisingly, Lance – who was the whole reason she was in this mess – was not in the hallway. Kitty began walking around to find the sloppy haired boy. "I am going to kill this boy when I find him," she muttered.

As she headed toward the cafeteria, she saw from the window that he was by the parking lot of the school. _He was probably planning to leave from the beginning and got me caught up in the situation too._ Kitty fumed and rushed down the stairs to where he was. Before he could put on his motorcycle helmet, Kitty stood in front of him.

"What this?" he asked with a laugh. Kitty's heart hammered a little faster at the sound of his laugh but she ignored it and tried to focus on her anger. "The old man didn't find you name on the attendance list?"

"Shut up." She hissed, stepping closer to him. "Why did you do all that? You could have just left class on your own! What was the point of getting me involved?"

Lance shrugged. "There was no point. But I was bored."

Kitty was sure that her face was turning an angry red by now. "You are so annoying!" she wailed. "You couldn't have waited until he had given us a grade or something? And you know I'm having a hard time trying to understand what's going on in that class!"

"Well, that isn't really my problem." He said, putting his helmet on.

"Hang on!" Kitty said pushing him back. "You can't just ruin my morning, and get me in trouble, and then leave."

"I could, actually." Lance said lazily.

Kitty crossed her arms. "I think I deserve something for all my troubles."

"I don't apologize to X-men."

Kitty glared at him. "You are so full of yourself. I don't know why I bother."

Lance smiled and took the key out of his motorcycle. "I know why. You have a crush on me."

This time, Kitty laughed. "Wow." She said. "You really are full of yourself. I do not-"

"Sucks though. When I tell Pietro he'll probably blame it on me."

"Pietro? What does he have to do-"

"But I don't see why it's my fault." Lance continued talking over Kitty's question. "I can't help that I was born with better looks than him."

At this, Kitty's mouth dropped open. "Wait! So are you trying to say-?"

Suddenly, Lance noticed something. "Well, it's been nice talking to you, Kitty. But I have to go." Without warning, he started his motorcycle and drove away, leaving behind a very confused Kitty.

He drove around to the other side of the school where a lady was waiting for him. To everyone else, it was just another random stranger, but Lance knew it wasn't.

"I got your missed call." He said, taking off his helmet, but not stepping closer to the sidewalk. The stranger smiled maliciously and stepped toward him. "What do you want?"

"Dear, what I want you could not possibly retrieve."

Lance narrowed his eyes at the woman. It seemed she would never stop speaking in riddles. "Then why did I come here, Mystique?"

"You've been spending time with that girl. Kitty Pride."

"Yeah, so what?"

She smiled crookedly and grazed her hand along his motorcycle. "You like her, don't you?"

"Not really." He said. "She's just as annoying as all of the other X-men."

At his words, Mystique's smile faltered. "Well, believe me when I say she enjoys your company."

"No, that's definitely not true."

"Nonetheless." Mystique continued in a harsh tone. "I noticed you have a class with her. I want you to get close to her."

"What's my developing a relationship got to do with you?" he questioned.

"I need something from the Institute. If she trusts you, you can get in there and get me what I desire."

Lance raised an eyebrow. Mystique was always trying to do something to the old man Xavier. "No thanks. She's not my type." He said, putting on his helmet again. "I'm going back to school."

"That wasn't a request." Mystique said icily.

Lance shrugged. "So, what? The BrotherHood doesn't obey your every command. Get a life." With that, he quickly rode away. Mystique scared him, but he had no reason to listen to her. He had his own life to sort out. And he knew the best way to live his own life was not to get caught in between Mystique and the X-men.

* * *

After school, Kurt caught up with Kitty at her locker. "Hey," he said, surprising her. Kitty hit her head as she tried to look at him. "Woah!"

"Kurt, you scared me!" She moaned as she touched the soft spot on her head.

"Sorry about that."

Kitty gathered her things and huffed as she found her school ID at the bottom of her bag. "Stupid thing." She mumbled.

"What did you say?" Kurt asked.

Kitty waved it off and sighed. "So, what's up?"

"I wanted to talk to you about something. I saw you with Lance today." He said.

Kitty frowned at the name and scanned the parking lot for Jean's car. "Yeah, we like have a class together."

"No I mean I saw you skipping class _with him._"

Kitty gave Kurt a laugh. "I would never skip class or go anywhere with that crazy guy. What do you mean you saw me?" _Well,_ she thought in her head,_ of course the other day when he dropped me off at the institute doesn't count._

"This afternoon." Kurt insisted. "I saw you and him in the parking lot from a class window."

Kitty breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh that. That's nothing."

"Do you like him?" Kurt asked as Kitty finally spotted Jean's car.

At his words, Kitty turned to face him with a glare. "Why does everyone keep saying that? No of course I don't like him!"

"I mean you looked pretty close with him." Kurt continued. "You two were laughing."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "Yes, because he thought I liked him. Of course I laughed. How can like anyone not laugh at that outrageous idea?" But now the more she thought about it, the more she questioned her actions. When she had a chance she was talking to him. But there was nothing wrong with that. She enjoyed their little banter; Lance always had something to say. And he wasn't so hard on the eyes either.

"Okay." Kurt said nervously. "From far away it looked like you two-"

Kitty laughed, this time more at her own thoughts. "No, don't worry Kurt. I do not like Lance at all. The reason I was with him is a long story. Nothing like what it seemed."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_And I/ I like the sound/ Of what I've been hearing_

"So, Kitty. Are you and that guy in your fourth hour together or something?"

Kitty laughed at her friend. "Patrice, there are like 20 guys in that class. Which one are you talking about?"

"Oh I don't know his name. You know him though; you guys are together all the time!" Kitty rolled her eyes and turned away from her dramatic friend. "That's him!" Patrice said suddenly, grabbing Kitty and pointing to the windows.

Outside were several boys trying to sneak off campus. Put Patrice was pointing to the one who was doing motorcycle tricks. "Lance?" Kitty groaned.

"Yeah, he's so cute." Patrice gushed. "Don't you think?"

"Forget that," another girl said. "He has a motorcycle! How cool is that!"

Kitty took another bite of her food as she thought of an answer. Lance was cute, there was no denying it, but if she said that to her friends they would think she liked him. Which she didn't – not like they thought anyway. After weeks of picking arguments with each other, the two had finally settled on some sort of friendship.

If she said he was ugly she would probably have to set one of her friends up with him. Or her friends would think she was lying and say she was just hiding about her "true feelings for him". There was no way she would win.

"She definitely thinks he's cute!" another one of her friends laughed, elbowing Patrice. "Look at her thinking about him."

Kitty sighed. Her week was not going the way she wanted at all, and this conversation was not what she wanted to have. "He's not ugly, fine. But we only talk so much because we like have a class together."

As expected, her friends were not happy with her response.

"Oh come on!"

"You two would look so cute together!"

"You talk outside of class too!"

"Wait, so does that mean you two aren't together?" Patrice asked again.

"No we are not together. I don't think I could ever like him, he's like so annoying!" Kitty took another bite of her food and cringed while the other girls berated her.

"Kitty you say that about everyone! You'll never get a boyfriend at this rate."

"But he's so cool, how can he be annoying?"

"Does he have a girlfriend?"

Kitty shrugged, and gathered her things as the bell rang. "I'm telling you guys, we only talk because we have a class together. I never asked about a girlfriend."

While the other girls crooned about this new development, Kitty gathered her things and left the cafeteria. Her friends were great, but there were other things that Kitty cared about beside small gossip. Somewhere on the other side of the city, a boy was going through mutations and was blaming it on Kitty. He had tried to go public with this information to the media and that's what most of the X-men were busy with today.

Even though Kitty knew it had nothing to do with her, she couldn't help thinking that it was all her fault.

"You know, you should really learn to drive." Lance said casually, appearing at Kitty's locker at the end of the day. She rolled her eyes and checked her reflection in the mirror. He watched as she checked her teeth for anything and then snapped her little compact shut. He wondered how often she was caught with something in her teeth.

"Oh do I now? And what brought on this burst of encouragement?"

"All your X-pals just left the school. Looks like you're going to have to find another way to get home."

Kitty raised her eyebrow at the shaggy haired boy next to her. It was always a mystery how he managed to be there every time she was lonely. "Are you stalking us now?"

"When school bores you to death and all you do is roam the halls, you begin to notice things."

Kitty laughed and shut her locker. "How did you even make it to senior year?"

From the corner of his eye, Lance saw Pietro eyeing him. Smirking, Lance followed Kitty as she made her way down the hall. Pietro clearly liked Kitty, but he needed a push to actually acknowledge it. Hopefully jealousy would do the trick. "So, why is it that they all left without you? Did they forget you?"

"No." Kitty sighed. "It's complicated," she said after a moment.

Lance hated to admit it, but Kitty wasn't a stranger to him anymore. They talked occasionally - even though most conversations led to an argument. But because of that, it made Lance know a lot about her. And it included noticing the way her body stiffened when she was trying to keep something to herself; which always led to his curiosity taking hold of him.

"I'm not going anywhere." He said. "I've got time."

Kitty looked up at him and Lance noticed the way her body seemed to relax. "They told me why they were going. But I wasn't allowed to come because it – the person they're looking for was someone that I used to know."

"And I'm assuming they're looking for this person because he's a new mutant?" Lance asked.

"I am not agreeing, but I am not going to say you're wrong." Kitty said. She knew that she shouldn't be telling Lance anything at all, but she was sure that if she didn't give out a name or location, it would be okay.

"So? Why weren't you allowed to go?" Kitty shrugged and began to walk faster, but Lance knew better. He stepped in front of her and blocked her path. "Is it like a family member or something?"

"Can we just not talk about it?" Kitty asked, beginning to get agitated.

Lance was almost half a foot taller than Kitty and he loomed over her, entering her personal space. Kitty usually hated when people did that. But the worst thing was that when it was Lance looming over her, she enjoyed it. She enjoyed the smell of his cologne and the way her heart beat faster when their bodies accidentally collided.

But she didn't like Lance. Or she didn't want to anyway. He was always picking an argument with her or getting her into trouble. And he was part of the BrotherHood, who sided with Mystique. Kitty and her friends were injured several times because of Lance. He was just an all around trouble maker who skipped classes whenever he wanted. So why didn't she move away?

"You clearly want to talk about it." He said breaking her out of her thoughts.

"What makes you think that?" Kitty asked, looking up at him now.

Lance opened his mouth to say something, but realized he didn't actually know what why he was asking about her private life. There was just something he saw in her body language. But he couldn't tell her that; he'd sound like an idiot. And why did he care? Kitty wasn't anything special.

They looked at each other for a quiet moment before he shrugged and moved away from Kitty. "No reason," he said lamely, hating that this one normal girl was making him question his own actions.

Even though he was right about her wanting to talk to someone, Kitty nodded and continued on her way to tutoring. There was no reason Lance needed to know what she did with her life. It was better if they kept their conversations to small bickering.

* * *

Lance arrived at the small building where he helped out after school. It was a recreation center for youth in the community. He made his way to the front office and punched in his volunteer ID to clock in. He didn't notice anything was wrong until he saw the police in the gymnasium.

Usually, he went to the gym first to check on a boy that he had grown friendly with. When he saw that Andrew was not there, he began to get worried.

"Hey," a police officer said, stopping Lance before he could go past the yellow tape. "Let me see your ID sir, this is a crime scene."

"Crime scene?" Lance asked.

"I'm sorry sir, but we are not disclosing any information to anyone that isn't a full time staff here." And with that the officer blocked Lance's path.

Lance turned away from the officer to find someone else that would give him more information. He saw a young teenage girl that was watching him from outside. And then he noticed something strange, the girl's eyes seemed to change color. She smiled coldly at him and began to walk away.

Trusting his gut, Lance immediately followed her. He wanted to say he cornered her into the west entrance of the building but he had a feeling that she led him there on purpose.

"Mystique." He said, facing her. "What did you do?"

The girl laughed and morphed into a tall lady with blue skin and red hair. She was looking at Lance amusedly. "What makes you think I had something to do with it?"

"Shut up." Lance could feel the ground beneath him trembling and knew that he would lose his patience quickly. No one knew about his part-time position here and seeing Mystique here made him feel horribly violated.

"Careful with that temper of yours," Mystique cooed. "Wouldn't want to bring this building down, would you? Not with all those young kids running around."

Her tone made Lance take a step back, but he wasn't ready to go until he had some answers. "Where's Andrew?"

"Oh, you mean that kid with the ginger hair? He's fine; but he's just gone missing." She tutted as if it was sad news to her. "It's a shame, the police have no idea what happened. Who knows what happened?"

At her words Lance's blood began to boil and ground began to shake.

"I wouldn't do anything too rash," Mystique murmured. "After all, I am the only person who knows where little Andrew is." Lance could perfectly image choking Mystique and getting answers out of her, but he knew that would never happen. Taking a deep breath, he managed to make the ground stop shaking. "Now that's better," Mystique took a step toward Lance and smiled.

"What do you want?" Lance asked. "Why are you hurting the kid?"

"Andrew will be back by nightfall." Mystique said, watching Lance's reaction carefully. "That is, if you agree to do what I tell you."

Lance knew this would be a mistake. Not only was Mystique hell bent on destroying the X-men, but she never kept her word. Who knew if she could be trusted? But she was right; she was the only person who knew where Andrew was.

"What do you want?"

"I only want you do agree to complete the task I asked of last month."

"What? Does this have to do with that X-men girl?"

"Shadow cat," Mystique said with a nod. "I'm sure it can't be that hard for you to woo her. I already noticed she's taken a liking to you."

"And if I agree to pretending to like her in order to get into the Xavier Institute you'll let Andrew go? It might take another month for her to trust me enough to bring me there."

"I will release Andrew tonight." Mystique said as if she were talking about a toy instead of a child. "But, if I find out that you are not doing as you are told, Andrew or some other children might go missing again. And next time, I cannot assure you they will return."

Even though he would much rather crush her between the plates of the Earth, Lance immediately nodded his head. "Yeah, fine. I agree. I'll get you into that stupid institute."

Mystique nodded. "I knew you'd agree to my simple request."

* * *

A/N: Happy friday everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. From the cartoon X-men I know Mystique was a villain of sorts who still cared for Kurt and Rogue (who were her children I believe?) but in this story she's just a psycho. Leave me a review! More cuter Lancitty moments to come :)


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hello everyone! This is sort of a cute chapter and I really enjoyed writing it so I'm think Valentine's day is the perfect day for an upload. If you've seen Shugo Chara, this chapter might give you a tiny scene of Amuto nostalgia. Please review and tell me what you think!

* * *

_But I need proof_

Lance knew the only way to get Andrew back safely would be to try and fulfill his part of the bargain first. And he had a feeling Mystique would be watching him closely.

Luckily, Kitty was still at school attending a tutoring session for one of her classes. So Lance waited by her locker and tried to keep his temper down. He hated being powerless like this. And he had spent so hard trying to keep his work at the recreational center a secret. No one knew about it, so how did Mystique find out?

The ground around him began to tremble and Lance sighed. He was never very good at controlling his temper. He was only good at using it.

Eventually, the hallway began to fill with students once again who were leaving their after school activities. Lance would usually be flirting with one of the gorgeous girls walking by, but this time he paid no attention. He kept his focus on one thing.

"Look! He's at your locker!" Patrice said suddenly and the rest of the girls giggled. "Kitty you were SO lying to us earlier."

Kitty rolled her eyes, but she was a bit puzzled by Lance being there. He never hung around after school unless it was to vandalize property with his friends.

"I bet he likes you," Patrice said with a sigh.

"What if he asks you out on a date?" The girl on Kitty's right asked.

"I'm telling you guys we don't like each other!"

"Then why's he at your locker?"

Kitty shrugged. "Well, I'm going go to go find out." She approached him slowly and kept the open locker between them as she spoke. "Why are you here?" she asked bluntly.

"Are you done with your day?" he asked quietly.

"Um, yeah. School is over."

"Good." Lance said, shutting her locker and taking her hand. "Then you're coming with me."

Kitty could hear her friends giggling at the end of the hall. "What? No way!" she said trying to pry her hand loose. "Where are you taking me?"

Lance rolled his eyes. "Stop acting so scared. I just have to show you something."

"What could possibly be so important that you have to drag me around for?" she asked, finally phasing out of his grip when they reached the empty parking lot.

Lance stumbled and sighed before turning around. He knew the only way to do this was to make Kitty think that he was interested in her. Which, unfortunately, meant being romantic. But it was hard if she was going to be so against it.

"It's a surprise," he said, in his most charming voice.

Most girls swooned at this, or were at least intrigued. But it had the opposite effect on the girl standing in front of him. "Oh I don't think so." She said, taking a step back. "I'm not going anywhere with you until you tell me where."

"Well that would just ruin the surprise!"

"I'm not the type of person to go with a guy to a 'surprise' alone when he's tried to hurt me and my friends several times."

"Kitty," he said stepping closer to her. "I'm trying to be romantic and you are making this very hard."

Kitty's eyes bulged out of her head. "Romantic?" she echoed. And then suddenly she was looking around wildly. "This is a trick," she muttered aloud. "Some prank you and your BrotherHood are up to."

Lance rolled his eyes, amused. "It isn't a trick."

Kitty stepped away from him and turned her head, trying to see where his friends were hiding. "I know as soon as I go with you, I'll probably be left a trash compound and you and your friends will have plenty of laughs! But I am not falling for this Lance."

"Kitty, I promise-"

"Okay!" Kitty called out. "You guys can come out now." She checked behind a random car. "I know this is a trick."

Finally, Lance lost his patience. He pulled her by the hand again but she used her powers to slip out of his grip. "Would you stop doing that?" he exclaimed. "I'm telling you this isn't a trick. No one is going to jump out of a dark corner laughing at you."

After one more peek around the corner, Kitty began to relax. "You're being serious?" she asked.

Lance nodded. "Uh that's what I've been saying for the past five minutes!"

But Kitty was still a bit skeptical. "You know you said romantic before, right?"

Lance found himself rolling his eyes again. He hated Mystique. "Yes, I know. What? Has no one ever done anything romantic for you?"

"Shut up." Kitty said. "I'm just having a hard time believing that you would say something like that.

"So?"

"So what?"

"Are you coming with me?" Lance asked.

Kitty chewed her lip trying to decide. She didn't for minute believe that he was trying to be romantic. He was obviously up to something. And there was only one way to find out what it was. Quickly, she shot a text to Rogue and told her to be worried if she didn't return or call in two hours.

"I want to be home by 8." She said sharply.

Lance nodded. "You'll be back before then."

Kitty looked around awkwardly. "Okay, now what?"

"My motorcycle of course," Lance said with a grin.

"Of course." Kitty muttered, rolling her eyes.

* * *

While Lance was driving, he had told Kitty to close her eyes in order to make the place they were headed a surprise. But Kitty ignored him and memorized all the stops they made turns at. He had taken her to a bit of a rundown part of the city.

When they both got off of the motorcycle, he sighed. "You were supposed to keep your eyes closed."

"You didn't really think I would, did you?" Kitty asked, stepping away while he secured his bike.

Lance grinned as he turned away. Even though Kitty was quite annoying, she was quite an entertainment.

"Where are we?" she asked, looking around at the small shopping center.

"You've probably never been here," Lance said, reaching for her hand.

Kitty easily phased out of his grip and crossed her arms. "I don't think so." She said.

Lance shrugged and continued. "This is almost the edge of Tulnick County. Mostly low-income workers live here because it's where they can afford housing."

"Do you come here a lot?" Kitty asked, staying close to him. Despite the small area, there were a lot of people out and they kept bumping into her if she strayed too far away from Lance.

He looked down at her when he felt her shoulders bump into him more than once. She didn't seem relaxed at all, but at least she was here. And he found the fact that she was walking alongside him strangely comforting.

"I used to. I knew a boy who lived here and I would drop him off sometimes." He said quietly, remembering Andrew and remembering why they were here in the first place. He had to make it look like he liked Kitty.

"It isn't the first place I think of when I think of romantic." Kitty said.

Lance nodded. "The place we're going is behind the mall. Come on." He led her down an alley and around a couple of buildings before he stopped and blocked her path. "Close your eyes."

"Not this again," Kitty said.

"It'll be worth it."

"Okay, but if this is a trash compound, you are dead."

Lance laughed behind her and held her shoulders to guide her along a path. After a right turn, he stopped. "Okay," he said. "Look."

Despite Kitty being a nuisance, Lance enjoyed watching her react to the carnival in front of her. She looked confused at first, but her face quickly split into a smile when she saw the rides. Colorful lights streamed across her face and the smell of cotton candy surrounded them.

"What do you think?" Lance asked. He had never taken a girl here before. When he actually liked a girl, they would go to the movies or a restaurant. In comparison, this was a bit of a childish place but it was all he could think of on such short notice. Lucky for him, the smile on Kitty's face didn't falter. "This is actually the carnival's last day here, so you're lucky I've decided to be romantic all of a sudden."

He swore he saw Kitty blush for a second before she took off toward the entrance. "What are we waiting for?" she laughed.

Despite her initial mistrust in Lance, Kitty pulled him along and they bought tickets. And Lance had to admit it, her happiness was infectious; or maybe it was just the mood of the carnival in general. He didn't really care about anything except for making sure Andrew was safe. But for now, that situation moved to the back of his mind.

He enthusiastically competed against Kitty to throw as many pins as he could. Unfortunately, the kid next to them knocked down the most and got the prize of a teddy bear. Still, the grin didn't fall from either of their faces.

"I can't remember the last time I did this." Lance laughed as they searched for something else to do.

Kitty agreed with him and spotted a pie-throwing contest. With plenty of bribing, Kitty got Lance to stand behind the cardboard cutout as she had three chances to hit him with a pie. "Stop moving!" She giggled, throwing her first one.

"I'm not!" Lance lied, ducking his face behind the bottom of the cardboard as the pie landed on the grass to his left.

"Cheater!" she called out. A couple of people next to them booed and Lance finally stayed still as Kitty fired her last two plates of pie. Despite her efforts, neither pie reached the face of the smiling boy in front of her.

"A deal is a deal," he said, motioning for Kitty to take a seat.

"I feel like the deal should be null due to your cheating," Kitty grumbled, but she also sat down.

Luckily for Lance, he used his powers to move Kitty into the perfect position and his first pie collided with her directly in the face. Behind him, plenty of people cheered as Kitty gasped and Lance laughed at her surprise.

"You are such a cheater." She said, hitting his arm. However, Lance kept laughing. Smirking, Kitty took off some of the whipped cream on her forehead and put it in his hair.

"Sore loser!" he laughed. Kitty simply stuck her tongue out at him as she headed for one of the portable toilets.

As she wiped the pie off of her face in the sink, her hands lingered at the smile on her face. Wasn't she the one thinking that he would be taking her to a dumping ground? And what this all about anyway? Romance? Was it just a trick?

Maybe it was easier not to think to about it. Kitty stepped out of the cramped portable and found Lance standing by the hotdog stand. "I thought I was going to buy the food." Kitty said as she reached his side. "Besides, you're supposed to eat cotton candy first, dummy."

Lance looked down at her and immediately an easy smile fell on his face. Maybe it was the excitement of being at the edge of town with him, or maybe it was the lights of the carnival but Kitty had a feeling she would do anything to keep that smile on his face. It made her stomach flip at the idea.

"Who said one of these is for you?" he said, taking a bite out of one and holding the other from her reach.

"Hey!" Kitty exclaimed, reaching for the hot dog.

"Go eat some cotton candy." Lance teased.

He was just about to give in to her when Kitty's phone began to ring. Her smile faltered for a moment before she picked it up.

"Hey Rogue, is everything okay?" Kitty asked, wondering why on Earth her friend was calling her. Her mind immediately jumped to the mission the X-men was on.

"You told me to worry if you didn't call me in two hours, remember?" Rogue asked, sounding alarmed.

Kitty grabbed Lance's arm to check his watch. "It hasn't been two hours, has it?" she asked.

Lance shrugged, and handed Kitty the other hot dog. She smiled gratefully and stepped away.

"Yeah, not quite. But what's going on? Are you in trouble or something?"

"No, no. It's nothing like that." Kitty looked from Lance to the sky and immediately thought of a good lie. "Me and a couple of friends went joyriding in their parents new car at the edge of town. I just – uh in case something happened I like wanted someone to know to contact me. That's why I texted you."

"Joy riding?" Rogue asked, sounding like she didn't believe her.

"Yes. But like, don't worry though. Everything's okay. We stopped to get some dinner."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. And um, what happened with Jonathan?" she asked. Kitty noticed Lance staring at her and turned away to whisper to Rogue about the mission.

When she hung up and finally turned back to Lance her mood was a bit dampened, but she was still smiling.

"Joy riding?" Lance teased.

Kitty shrugged, eating the last bit of her hot dog. "I had to say something."

"Maybe we should do a little joy riding just so it isn't a complete lie?" Lance could practically imagine Kitty having a heart attack.

"Don't even think about it." Kitty laughed. They both lapsed into silence for a second as the real world came back to them.

"Do you have to go soon?" Lance asked.

"I don't want to leave just yet." Kitty sighed. "But I probably should."

"We just ate. We should probably wait a while before getting back on my motorcycle."

"Yeah, you're right." Kitty said. "Come on then, there's one more thing I want to do. I haven't been on this ride in a long time."

Lance frowned when she stopped at a carousel that had large teacups instead of horses. "We're going to break it." He grumbled, frowning at the bright colors of the teacups.

"Come on." Kitty urged.

Eventually they both managed to cram into the ride and sat with their bodies pressed together. Lance was embarrassed to be in the ride but Kitty wished someone was around to take a picture of his face.

"You look ridiculous," Kitty teased.

"I could easily cause a small earth quake and they would shut this ride down-"

"No! Don't do that!" Kitty gasped.

"Then don't ever mention this again."

"Okay, fine." Kitty smiled at all the kids around them and Lance found his face twitching to smile as well as he watched her.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked, startling him.

He reached out to wipe off some of the pie she had missed on the edge of her ear. "I was just wondering if I should wipe that off or not." He said.

Kitty nodded and looked away. The ride began to move in circles and carnival music surrounded them. She thought back to when they first saw each other in AP Biology two months ago. She never imagined they'd end up doing something like this together. She was glad he was here.

"You were right." She said quietly. "When you said I wanted to talk earlier today."

Lance glanced at Kitty and saw that her smile was gone. He wanted to change the subject just so he could see her smile again but he knew she had something to get off of her chest. "I'm not going anywhere."

A small smile slipped on Kitty's face as they locked eyes. "Last summer I was vacationing with my parents in Florida and I met this guy." She began, leaning back against the teacup. Her voice was light, but Lance could tell she was having trouble talking about it. "He was great. But he didn't know about my powers, of course. And for the two months that we got to know each other, I fooled myself into thinking that it wouldn't matter. I could have a boyfriend who didn't know about my powers or would never for that matter."

"But he found out?" Lance asked.

Kitty pursed her lips. "We were crossing the street and a car was coming that I hadn't seen. It started honking at us, to tell us to move. Jonathan grabbed my hand, but in a panic I phased out of his grip and stepped back onto the sidewalk. He was so surprised that he was in shock or something and the car hit him."

Kitty paused and took a deep breath, trying – and failing – to erase the image out of her mind.

"It's not your fault." Lance said immediately.

Kitty nodded absentmindedly. "Everyone says that. And his injury wasn't anything beyond a minor concussion. But he began to obsess over my powers. Of course I lied about it… But he kept insisting that I'd done it. I should have ended the relationship right there, but I felt guilty for him getting hit. So I continued to hang out with him, even though he began to harass me about my powers. After a week, I noticed people were following me, so I broke up with him and made sure my parents and I left immediately. But unfortunately it didn't end there; he some how ended up following me all the way here."

"And that's what your X-men friends were doing? Telling him to leave? A police restraining order would have done the same."

Kitty shook her head. "I tried that back when we were in Florida. No he followed me here and began to stalk others who live in the institute with me. He's trying to compile negative things against us and come out and tell everyone about mutants. And he says because of me he's developed powers."

"He became a mutant because of you?" Lance scoffed. "I don't believe that."

"You don't?"

Lance gave Kitty a reassuring smile. "He's probably lying. We go to school and interact with people all of the time. Our powers or mutations – or whatever you want to call it aren't contagious. None of this is your fault."

"Are you sure?" Kitty asked, sitting up now. "I'm convinced the whole thing is my fault. I should've just-"

"Just what?" Lance interrupted. "Never gone out with him? You couldn't have possibly known that he would do this."

"I should've left him when he first started his obsession. I egged him on by staying with him."

"You're being too hard on yourself." Lance said. He leaned forward so their faces were only four inches apart. "You felt like you owed him for that car accident – which again wasn't your fault. And you can't blame yourself for what you feel."

"It still feels like it's all my fault. And now-" she took a deep breath moving away from Lance to lower her voice. "Now I caused all this trouble for professor X and Jonathan's obsession is just going to-"

"Jonathan's obsession is his problem." Lance said, interrupting once again. His voice was calm and Kitty found herself believing him. "You feeling guilty about him getting hit – okay I understand that. But you don't have to feel bad for it. He's fine now – or at least I'm guessing so because he's well enough to stalk you from three states away. And if he continues to do things well that's what your X-men are for, right? Doing good things, and making us mutants look good. Besides, they need some exercise anyway; all of you are getting fat."

"Hey!" Kitty said with a laugh.

"I'm joking," he said raising his hands in surrender. "But all the other stuff, I'm serious. It isn't your fault. You shouldn't be so upset about it."

The carnival music stopped and the pair stood up.

"Maybe you're right." Kitty said.

Lance chuckled. "Of course I'm right." He said. "Now, how about I take you back home before your X-men come after _me_."

Kitty shook her head and followed him off of the ride. They bought a stick of cotton candy before leaving – Kitty insisted – and Lance reached for her hand as he led her around the buildings and alleyways. And this time, Kitty didn't resist.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Don't wanna leave it up to my imagination/ everybody's got their own interpretation_**

Lance dropped Kitty two streets away from The Institute at her request. When she got off of the motorcycle she twisted her hands for a moment before sighing out loud. Lance watched in amusement as she struggled to think of a good way to phrase her question.

"Just spit it out," he said, after waiting for five minutes.

"What was all that for?" Kitty asked finally, glad that the motorcycle he was sitting on brought them to eye-level. Lance however, was not happy with her question. He had hoped she would just enjoy their night out and that it would be enough for Mystique to bring Andrew home; he had a feeling Mystique was watching them at the carnival. He didn't really like Kitty but he also didn't like lying to her face about feelings that he didn't have. "And don't say romance, because I don't believe for one second that-"

"Because I like you," He said suddenly, the lie on his tongue making him stutter.

"No you don't." Kitty argued, obviously noticing his stutter. "A week ago, we wouldn't have even called each other friends. I refuse to believe that you like me."

Lance cleared his throat and tried again. "I do like you."

Kitty continued to give him a doubtful look.

"Why do you keep making that face? Why is it so hard to believe?"

"Because, you – I mean, what could you possibly like about me?"

Lance swallowed. He didn't really like her as she was thinking, but he had to say something. Luckily, his brain was working today. "You're pretty," he said immediately, knowing that girls loved that compliment. Usually, he would have stopped there, but he found himself still talking. "And you're funny. And when something's wrong I want to be able to make you smile again." Kitty contemplated his words for a moment longer, and Lance feared she still doubted him. "I want to get to know you more." He said suddenly. "Are you going to let me?"

"That depends on whether I believe you or not." Kitty said, feeling her face warm.

"Have I given you any reason not to believe me?" he asked. "And you told me about Jonathan, so you trust me to a point. What's stopping you from believing that I like you?"

Kitty didn't respond, and only stepped away from him. "I have to go." She said hesitantly.

For some reason, Lance had the feeling that Mystique was still watching them. He didn't want her to think that he was failing at what she'd asked him to do. If she thought he couldn't succeed, she would just hurt more people.

"Just give me a chance." He said at last. Kitty halted to look at him for a moment. "Get to know me." He said, his voice daring her.

Kitty swallowed, feeling a shiver run down her. She hated to admit it, but there was something exciting about his idea. Something exciting about him in general. She smiled and began to walk away, but didn't say anything. Lance hoped that smile was a good thing.

* * *

For once, Mystique was true to her word and the police miraculously found Andrew taking a nap in the park near the recreation center. Which meant Lance had to hold up his end of the bargain.

He watched from the east exit of school as Kitty and a couple other friends talked with each other. He wasn't too keen on sticking close to an X-men and then trying to get into the institute. He wondered if it was possible at all.

When her friends were finally gone, he approached her locker. She continued to rummage around in her locker as he stood there silently, wondering where he should start.

Fortunately for him, Kitty spoke first. "I really hope you aren't here to finish that conversation from yesterday because I still don't want to talk about it."

"Then what would you like to talk about?" Lance asked.

Kitty shut her locker and looked at him in surprise. "It's you. Um, ignore what I said- I thought you were someone else."

"I'm still interested in what you'd like to talk about." He said.

Kitty laughed nervously. She felt bad that he had admitted he had feelings for her and she was being cold towards him, but she was still skeptical if he truly meant it. "Since when do you care what I want to talk about? I thought your goal in life was just to skip classes and bring others into your trouble."

At this, Lance smiled. It looked like she wasn't someone to easily fall for his sweet words. It made him happy because, maybe this meant Mystique would have to find another way into the institute.

"When can I take you out again?" he asked, remembering Mystique eyeing him as he entered the school this morning. "You've been almost avoiding me these past few days."

Kitty shrugged. It was true; but she needed her space to think. And she had a feeling if she made too many excuses for absences, Rogue would sense something was up.

"Do you want me to like you?" she asked abruptly.

Lance smiled; as if he thought what Kitty was saying was amusing. "Yeah, it wouldn't hurt."

"What if I tell you I might not ever like you - like that?"

"You haven't even tried."

Kitty sighed. Lance always had something to say back to her. It irked her beyond belief.

"What's the harm in trying? If you don't end up liking me - well then that's your loss."

Kitty wanted to remain as neutral as possible around him, but it was hard especially when he was so charming.

"See, you're already smiling." Lance said pulling her cheek. "I'm probably half way to your heart."

"Calm down there Romeo." Kitty said, checking her phone. "Let's not get too ahead of ourselves. I have to go."

"Yeah sure, go ahead." Lance said. "Not like I was asking you out or anything." Obviously he didn't care about what Kitty thought about him, but he had to put on a show.

Kitty stopped midway and looked back. Lance thought for a second she was going to agree to going with him, but she simply said, "I'll see you on Monday Lance."

Even though he would never admit it out loud, he was sure he felt like a weight was lifted off his shoulders when Kitty said that.

"Yo!" His friend Toad said, popping up in Lance's face.

"Hey," Lance said, wondering what his smelly friend wanted.

"Guess who's back?" Lance shrugged and began walking toward the exit. He knew Toad would follow him and tell him anyway. "Vincent! You remember him, right?"

Lance's blood began to boil as a smile crept up his face. "Of course I remember him. I thought we taught him to never come back."

"Guess he didn't learn." Toad said with an equally gleeful face.

"Get the guys together. Looks like the punk needs another lesson."

* * *

It was around 8 pm when The BrotherHood cornered Vincent Morsey in an alley. Pietro sped behind the tall man and pushed him backwards, farther into the dead end alley.

"Hey buddy," Pietro said, suddenly standing in front of him. "And here I thought it was just a rumor. But look at you!" He laughed, a wild look in his eyes. Vincent backed against the wall, his eyes wide. "Alive and well! Isn't this something?"

"Leave me alone, you freak!" Vincent yelled, holding up his fists.

"I thought we left that word in the past, buddy." Pietro said evilly, quickly slugging Vincent in the stomach. However before he could cause more damage while Vincent was hurt, the ground under him shifted and moved the two away from each other.

"Save some fun for us, won't you Pietro?"

Pietro and Vincent turned to see Lance, Toad, and Blob approaching the alley.

"We've all got something to say for ya." Toad said with a laugh.

Once he saw that The BrotherHood was united, Vincent pulled out a gun. But before he could take off the safety, Pietro snatched it from his hand and threw it in the dumpster. Vincent simply gaped at his speed.

"Oh, he thinks a little gun is going to save him!" Toad teased, amusement in his eyes. "A big knife didn't work last time, but you think a gun is better?"

"When did you get so stupid?" Lance laughed.

"Help!" Vincent yelled out, not knowing what else to do. "Someone please-"

Lance quickly silenced him with a blow to the mouth. Vincent groaned on the floor while The BrotherHood laughed. "You didn't think that just because you ran away that we forgot, did you Vinc? We've all been waiting a while for you to come back. Of course, they doubted you'd return but I knew you weren't that smart."

"L-Listen guys I didn't mean to offend–"

"No one turns their back on us," Blob said, stepping up and holding Vincent against the wall by his shirt.

"I'm sorry man! I'm sorry!" Vincent yelled, spraying blood. "I didn't mean for you guys to take the fall!"

Lance punched him in the face again. "You should have thought about the consequences before, you son of –"

"Hey!" A southern accented voice yelled from the front of the alley. "Kurt, I knew I heard something!"

"Help!" Vincent managed to cry out.

Blob threw him to the ground, where he lay unconscious. "Well if it isn't the Idiot-men." He sneered at Rogue.

Kurt and Scott appeared behind her, neither looking pleased. Rogue took off her glove and stepped closer. "Try anything and you'll regret it."

"What the hell are you guys doing?" Scott asked, finally noticing Vincent on the floor.

"None of your business, Summers."

"He could be dead, you assholes!" Rogue seethed.

"Serves him right." Toad said.

"Look, we didn't corner him to kill him." Lance said. "Just rough him up a little. I'm sure you guys know how payback works right?"

"We aren't going to just walk away." Kurt said, stepping up. But Lance though it was hilarious because the blue haired boy was much shorter than him.

Lance stepped closer to Kurt and loomed over him with a smirk. "Give yourselves a minute and rethink that. Nothing good's gonna come out of trying to get Vincent to a safe place."

"He's already bleeding." Scott said, moving to separate Lance and Kurt. "You've roughed him up enough. Let him go."

"Didn't you hear him?" Pietro asked, giving Vincent a kick. "This is none of your business. Vincent here is a thief and was the head of gang that broke up a while back. This is gang business, which you three would know nothing about. So leave."

"I don't think so," Rogue said. Before her two friends could stop her she was running and easily managed to grab Pietro by the uncovered arm. Pietro yelped for a moment and then fell unconscious.

The others backed away a step but Lance smiled. The ground began to shake as he spoke. "That's fine. I've been itching for a fight anyway."

* * *

Kitty skipped her AP Biology class Monday out of anger. Lance had showed her a great time at the carnival earlier in the week, and had actually been sweet when asking her out again. And then he got in a fight with her friends. All she could think about was Rogue's bruised arm and Kurt's black eye.

She wanted to yell at Lance and snap his bones in half. And she knew that if she saw him in AP Bio acting like nothing was wrong, she might actually act on her raging thoughts.

"Okay," she breathed, taking a seat in the library. "He means nothing to me. He's just and idiot who needs a good butt kicking." Kitty thought for a minute that maybe agreeing on a date and then, SURPRISE beating him up for hurting her friends sounded like a good idea. But then she remembered that there was no use fighting fire with fire – or in this, case fists with fists. Lance liked her, and one way to punish him was to make it clear she didn't feel the same.

Before lunch, she found him talking to Pietro (whose locker was down the hall from hers') and Kitty felt her blood begin to boil. Kurt had made her promise not to go beat up Lance or any of his friends for what they did. And Kitty usually kept her promises.

But when Lance began to walk over to her, the promise flew out of her head. However, it did make her feel a little better to see that he was limping.

"Do you like flowers?" he asked, taking Kitty by surprise. She looked at him for a second, and was relieved to find he wasn't holding any type of flowers.

"No," she said.

"Good, because neither do I. How about going to watch a movie?"

Kitty simply shut her locker in response.

Lance was beginning to get annoyed that Kitty wasn't paying attention to him. And he knew that Mystique was getting even more annoyed. As if on cue, his phone chimed with a text from a blocked number as Kitty walked away. _Your failure will only result in more missing children from the recreation center. It's your choice. I want to see some progress._

The ground began to shake and Lance quickly made his way outside, walking away from the school. Stupid Mystique. The recreation center was another home for him. And getting threats about it reminded Lance about how powerless he was.

So he could move the Earth itself, so what? Mystique was as slimy as a slug. She could get out of any situation. He was nothing.

Lance took a deep breath to try to calm down. He needed to come up with a plan. It was obvious that Kitty had enjoyed their time at the carnival. But why was she ignoring him now? She had trusted him taking her to an unknown place, and that he would take her back home safely. And she had even told him about Jonathan.

"That's it," he thought with a smile. "That's how I'll get her talking."

He went back to school and found her walking from the bathroom. He casually walked with her as if he had been there the entire time. Kitty said nothing and kept her eyes in front of her.

"So," he said. "What happened with your X-men and Jonathan?"

Kitty faltered in her step. Everything about that night at the carnival came back to her. It made her feel incredibly stupid for telling Lance anything.

"None of your business." She said.

Lance might've counted her finally speaking to him as a victory, but the tone of her voice made him frown. "What's wrong?" he asked. Instead of responding, Kitty sped up. Lance sighed and easily caught up to her and steered her in the direction of a staircase. Luckily, she didn't yell out or anything. "Why don't you take a deep breath?" he suggested to Kitty who had a murderous look on her face. Needless to say, she didn't take a deep breath. He began to reach for her arm but she pulled it back. "What's wrong, Pride?" he asked in a softer tone. At the carnival she hadn't minded being pressed against him, but he got the feeling that she wasn't comfortable at all right now.

"You want to know what's wrong?" she asked, finally looking at him. "This." She grunted and kicked him in the leg that he had been limping on earlier.

Pain shot up his leg and Lance reared back in shock. "What was that for?" he exclaimed.

"For what you did to Rogue and Kurt!" she hissed.

Lance groaned and straightened up again. "That hurt! All I did to them was-"

"What was it you said to them?" Kitty mused, beginning to walk a circle around Lance so that he was against the wall. "You know how payback works."

"They were messing with my business. I told them –"

"You were hurting someone, Lance! Of course they weren't going to just leave." Kitty continued to glare at him as he massaged his wound.

Lance simply frowned in return. Now he probably had no chance of getting into the institute. Maybe instead of trying to make Kitty like him, he could blackmail her into getting Mystique in. But how was he going to do that?

"If I had been there, you would have just as easily hurt me too, wouldn't you?" Kitty asked quietly. She looked surprised, like she hadn't expected to say that.

When Lance didn't say anything straight away, she quickly turned around.

Lance immediately reached out, putting a hand on her shoulder. He didn't like Kitty all that much. He didn't like the situation he was in. He didn't like that he had to fake feelings for Kitty. He didn't like that she had kicked him. But he also didn't like that scared look in her eyes. He didn't want her to feel anything but relaxed around him.

Kitty didn't push away, but she still kept her back to him. Lance wondered if she was actually afraid of him. The X-men and The BrotherHood were always at odds, but for some reason, Lance and Kitty had never found themselves fighting each other. Lance imagined for a second what it would be like to fight her, but he knew he would not be able to do it.

Lance slowly brought Kitty closer to him. She resisted by holding her ground, but it was still enough to show that she didn't completely hate him.

"Your friend Rogue touched Pietro and started spinning circles around us, kicking dust in our faces. I didn't mean to hurt her so bad. I used my powers to make her stop. I didn't purposely throw her against the garbage."

"That doesn't-"

"I know, I know. Just listen." He sighed, turning Kitty around to face him. Kitty wanted to push him away. He had hurt her friends after all. And he was constantly cornering her between classes or causing trouble. He didn't deserve her attention. But for some reason she felt completely safe around him – despite his words. "Of course that doesn't excuse what actually happened. But listen to me when I say this. I would never hurt you. I would probably yell at you and tell you that what I'm doing is none of your business - but I would never hurt you."

"I want to believe you," she said slowly, finally meeting eyes with him. "But I'm a part of the X-men. And you – well you like doing things that we would usually stop you for."

Lance rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I remember. I did join you guys for two days."

"And if I had been there with Kurt, Rogue, and Scott yesterday, I would've stopped you too."

Lance looked at Kitty in silence before stepping back. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I know you would. But what do you want me to say? That guy double crossed me and the guys. I was not going to just let him get away with it!"

"I know," Kitty sighed.

"Well what do you want me to say then?" Lance asked again.

"I don't know. But I do know that I can't respect someone who fights my friends." Lance looked up quickly at her words. When he had been fighting Kitty's friends he hadn't thought about how this would affect her – and his ruse to get into the institute. "You said that I should try to get to know you. But I don't want to anymore. Not when you treat my friends like that. Don't ask me to go anywhere with you, Lance." Kitty said, walking away before Lance could get a word in.

* * *

For the next couple of days, Lance and Kitty barely looked at each other. They weren't doing any group assignments in AP Bio, and Kitty was more than happy. Or she thought she was.

Whenever she was in the hallway and sensed something, she would turn around and see Lance there. He wasn't staring at her or following her; he was just there. Kitty wondered when she had gotten used to knowing whenever he was around.

Her friends had asked her a couple of times what had happened to 'the boy with a motorcycle', but Kitty dismissed it. There was nothing to say after all. He was just another trouble maker. Just another guy who enjoyed chasing girls with short skirts. And just another guy that Kitty would easily forget.

When Friday finally rolled around, Kitty was highly agitated. Her senses still knew whenever Lance was around. And whenever she heard him laughing with Laura in AP Bio, she would feel strangely angry. It was annoying. Lance wasn't anything to her. They weren't even friends.

Maybe it was just strange that he had spent a lot of time before giving Kitty attention and claiming to like her, and now he didn't say anything to her. It didn't feel like anything in Kitty's life had changed because she would never admit that she had actually enjoyed Lance's attention.

Luckily, it would be snowing heavily during the weekend and Kitty was sure they'd get a day off on Monday. She was going to use this long weekend to give herself a spa treatment. That's definitely what her body needed.

"Hey, Kitty I need to talk to you." Rogue said, appearing at Kitty's side after school.

"Hmm?" Kitty asked distractedly, texting someone else.

"Did you um do something to Lance?" Rogue asked.

Kitty stopped in the middle of the hallway and the person behind her almost tripped. After apologizing, Kitty turned back to Rogue. "What did you say?"

Rogue gave her a strange look. "Lance. Have you talked-?"

"Yeah, no, I know what you said." Kitty waved dismissively. "What – um what makes you say that?"

"It's just that a couple weeks ago, Kurt said he saw you two hanging out or something. And then yesterday, Lance comes up to me and apologizes for what happened last weekend."

"He apologized?" Kitty exclaimed.

"Yeah, for that thing that happened in the alley last weekend. Did you have anything to do with him apologizing?"

"No – I don't think so." Kitty said, still confused. "We aren't friends or anything so I haven't talked to him um recently. What did he say to you?"

"Uh, he apologized for hurting me. And then he told me to convey the message to Kurt. Seems he's not man enough to tell Kurt himself but-"

"He really apologized?" Kitty repeated.

Rogue nodded. "I was pretty shocked too. No idea where that came from. Since when did those guys start doing normal things like apologizing? Oh hey, look! I guess Logan's not here today."

Kitty nodded, following Rogue toward Jean's car. Lance hadn't said anything to her after their argument on Friday. So what had prompted this?

* * *

REVIEWS ARE APPRECIATED


	6. Chapter 6

**_Maybe I don't deserve an explanation/I can't tell/Is it real/Is it true_**

It was around 5 am when Lance was thrown out of his bedroom window. He landed on the bushes and his wrist twisted painfully under him. He barely had time to register that this wasn't a dream when someone kicked him from the bushes to the yard.

"What the hell?" He roared, finally realizing that he should be on the defensive. The ground around him shook and car alarms began to go off down the street. But he didn't see anyone around. Lance squinted against the darkness around him and took a deep breath, examining his wounds.

Unfortunately, he was still on the ground and an invisible hand wasted no time picking him up by the collar and throwing him down again. He groaned and held his broken wrist against his body.

"You're wasting my time!" growled a voice.

Lance landed hard on his butt and cursed.

"I need to get in to that institute!" Mystique yelled, coming closer.

But luckily for Lance, he knew Mystique for a long time. Even though she was using her powers to make herself blend in completely with the background, he could detect the faint shimmer. He pushed himself up painfully and avoided a blow to the face.

He pointed his palms at the ground and felt the ground move him away – but Mystique was quicker. She jumped over the gap forming in the backyard and her nails streaked across Lance's outstretched arm.

"Bitch!" he exclaimed, moving back. The lights in the house began to turn on and he heard Pietro yelling his name. "I'm working on it! It's gonna take a lot to convince that girl-"

"Well do it faster." Mystique hissed, appearing back as her normal self just as Pietro and Blob opened the door. They eyed the two: Lance with his right hand twisted at an unnatural angle and Mystique eyeing him dangerously. Lance shook his head at his two friends and they closed the door slowly.

"I will." Lance said, standing up straighter. "Just give me some time."

"You have until the end of February." Mystique said in a very quiet voice.

"I can't get her to trust me in just 3 months-"

"You better. Get in her head, her heart, or pants - whatever works. Just get me there or the people you care about will be paying severely."

Lance sighed in defeat as Mystique blended in with her background and leaped away. He was left with the stillness of the morning and a sinking feeling in his stomach. He needed to get back to getting Kitty's attention.

* * *

The snow had melted quickly over the weekend and the high schoolers groaned about not having a day off. Kitty stood with her friends and laughed with them, but her mind was miles away.

Well, technically it was more focused on the conversation going on a couple of lockers down. Lance was standing there with Pietro. It looked like the two were having an argument. It seemed like Pietro was just shooting off a bunch of questions to which Lance just ignored. But why did his eyes shift to Kitty every other minute?

The third time they made eye contact, Kitty frowned. Why did he keep looking at her? As if sensing this, Lance shut his locker door and turned away.

"What like, do you think Kitty?" her friend Maria asked.

Kitty's head whipped back to her group. She was only half listening but she was pretty sure Maria was talking about how slutty her ex-boyfriend's sister was. Or maybe she was talking about a new car?

Kitty nodded mutely, hoping this was the right response. Maria squinted at Kitty for a second before snorting.

"Yeah, whatever. Clearly you don't give, like, two shits."

The rest of the group laughed nervously. Kitty glanced again at Lance. After Rogue had told her about Lance's apology, Kitty immediately wanted to ask him. But she hadn't been able to form the words.

Maria was right. She was so focused on Lance she hadn't been listening at all. But she couldn't let them know that. This was her senior year of high school. She couldn't just be a nobody. "Of course I care. I just-"

"Oh my God!" Maria suddenly squealed, eyes trained on Pietro. "That's the guy at the party I was telling you guys about."

"Oh that's the guy who has the motorcycle! Hey Kitty, isn't he your friend?"

Before Kitty could answer, Maria latched onto her arm. "If he is your friend let's go." She said, straightening her shoulders and walking toward the two boys.

"What? What are we doing?" Kitty asked, alarmed.

"Pretend like you need the notes for a class or, like, something and introduce me to them. I don't care about the tall one – don't worry. I'm more of a blond."

Kitty was pretty sure that wasn't Pietro's normal hair color, but she kept her mouth shut. "I don't care about him either," Kitty mumbled, but Maria wasn't even listening.

Eventually they reached the two and Pietro gave Kitty a very annoyed look.

"Hey guys," she said, her voice uncertain.

Lance finally turned away from his locker and Kitty's eyes widened at his appearance. He usually looked like he had just rolled out of bed but this was worse. There was a large bruise on his forehead and his arm was wrapped in a sling. Clearly he had been fighting.

"What happened to you?" Kitty asked, shifting away from Maria.

"This?" he asked, lifting his arm. "It's nothing." His eyes shifted to Maria for a moment to remind Kitty why she was actually here, but Kitty didn't get the message.

"What happened to him?" she asked, turning to Pietro.

"I was just trying to get him to tell me."

"Uh Kitty?" Maria coughed.

But Kitty had already turned back to Lance. "What do you mean, nothing? Did you finally fall off your motorcycle?"

"No," Pietro but in. "He hasn't had that thing for weeks. It was stolen." Lance glared at his friend while Kitty laughed. "But I'm betting it was the same person who stole it that did this to you."

Even though Pietro had specifically not said a name, Kitty had a feeling he knew who was after Lance.

But Lance was one step ahead, clearly seeing the gears working in Kitty's head. "Shut up, Pietro."

"So I'm right."

"I didn't say that." Lance sighed. "Look, I woke up too early this morning, so stop bothering me. I'm going to class."

He shouldered past the three of them. Maria was still trying to get Kitty's attention but Kitty was more focused on feeling stung by Lance's lack of words to her. True, they hadn't talked to each other for almost a month now, and she was still skeptical of everything he said, but he always had something to say to her.

Ignoring the rational part of her, Kitty followed him. He rolled his eyes when she finally caught up with him.

"Do I know you?" he asked, avoiding looking at Kitty. He knew that ignoring Kitty would only diminish her trust in him, but he had been rudely awoken out of his bed at a time when no one should be woken up. And come to think of it, it was all Kitty's fault. And it would also be her fault if he never got Mystique into the institute.

All in all, he didn't feel very apologetic.

"Lance, stop. What happened to you?"

"Nothing," he said, turning a corner. Kitty bumped into a couple of people and he slowed his pace ever so slightly so she could catch up.

"You broke your arm."

"Oh really? I hadn't noticed."

"Okay, fine. You don't want to talk; I get it." Kitty said with a sigh.

Lance nodded, glad she was being quiet. Being thrown out of a window at 5 am really gave him a headache. "Are you still here?" he asked in an amused tone. Kitty gave him a look but didn't respond. "Why do you care about what happened to me?" he asked after several moments of quiet.

"You realize you're just walking circles around the school, right?" Kitty asked, avoiding his question.

"If you need to be somewhere else, you can go." Lance said.

Kitty's response was to continue being at his side. The thing was, she didn't know what she was doing. Staying away from Lance had done her good. No teachers kicking her out of class, no worrying about what her friends would say, and certainly no one confusing her. But there must be some reason why her brain was directing her to walk the same path as him.

Eventually Lance needed a break due to his injured body and he stopped near the water fountain to catch his breath.

This worried Kitty. He was always this tall, broad shouldered guy with plenty of energy and an annoyingly charming smile on his face. To see him acting exhausted brought Kitty back to reality. He wasn't some evil guy who picked fights with her friends for fun. He probably had his own demons, his own reasons for everything. He had his own problems that Kitty had no right to poke and prod into.

He was just another guy who – albeit made some wrong choices but he was just like everyone else. He was a guy who admitted to liking Kitty, had pretty much been rejected by her and for some reason still asked her out. And even though his life was full of things Kitty had no idea about, he wanted to include her in them.

"Sometimes," Kitty began, talking aloud to stop her mind from wandering. "I – um I have this feeling. You know, like when you randomly sense something and you turn around? And then you realize, 'Oh, that's why.' It's been happening to me a lot these past few weeks. And you know what I see when I get that feeling?" Lance finally made eye contact with her, an all-knowing smile falling on his face. "I see you. And it's not like I want to, okay? I'm not purposefully waiting for you or something." Kitty said in a rush to keep Lance's ego from inflating too far. "I just – I see you, I know when you're there. And I have no idea why."

Lance leaned against the wall, the smile still on his face. "I think," he said slowly. "You've probably got some unfinished business with me. Maybe there's something you want to say to me?"

Kitty blushed under his gaze. "I thought you said you didn't feel like talking."

"Guess I was just waiting for you to talk about something interesting."

"Easier said than done, I'm not that interesting."

"Sure you are," said Lance, just as the bell rang.

Kitty stepped away from him, shaking her head. "I promise you I'm not."

"Uninteresting people don't just hang out with a hunk like me instead of going to class."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "I don't see any hunks around here."

Lance clicked his tongue. "Playing hard to get will only get you running back to me." He said. "Just like what's happening right now."

Kitty's mouth dropped open. "I am not running after you! And I am not playing-"

"You definitely ran after me."

"I – I didn't. I just – I just wanted to" Around them, people rushed to their classes as the late bell rang. From the back of her mind, Kitty thought she should think of a good excuse to give to her teacher when they asked why she was late.

"Well, actually no. I was the one playing hard to get. And THEN you ran after me." He laughed to himself quietly, as if it was an inside joke. "I should play hard to get more often." And then he look at Kitty from beneath his bangs. "I like it more when you're running after me."

Kitty was still trying to formulate a response. Something about his words and the way he was looking at her made her forget how to speak. "Shut up." She said finally. Her eyes flitted to his broken arm for a moment and she hesitated before leaving. "Are you seriously not going to tell me what happened?"

He shrugged. "I might. It depends."

"Depends on what?"

"If you go to the movies with me." He said with a smile.

Kitty opened her mouth to say something but an administrator was walking towards them. "Alright everyone, time for classes." They called out.

"Bye Lance," Kitty said, ducking away before the administrator could notice them.

* * *

He gave her space the next day, and as predicted, Kitty sought him out. "So, you want me to spend time with you in exchange for information? Seems pretty dramatic."

She was leaning over his desk and Lance found himself smiling at the sparkle in her eyes. He wondered if she was always this awake in the morning.

"That's how my life works. Or you know, you don't have to know how I broke my arm."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "I'm free on Saturday."

"That's cool. I'll see you at the Fieldbrooks theater at 4."

Kitty nodded, and turned back to her seat where her friend Rogue was staring at them. Kitty flipped through her notes to avoid Rogue's gaze.

* * *

Lance found Mystique at the recreation center on Friday afternoon. Immediately, she locked eyes with him. "Why are you here, again?" he asked, not wasting any time.

"I just wanted to see if there were any vulnerable children that needed to be kidnapped to teach you a lesson." Her eyes were scanning the people around them as she spoke, and Lance felt his blood boil.

"You had a great time kicking my ass the other day, didn't you? Don't worry, I get the point. There's no use bothering these kids."

Mystique laughed. "I do love when people have a weakness."

"Just leave already." Lance growled.

"Oh, I can't go yet, there's someone I'm waiting on." She smiled and changed her appearance. Lance followed her out near the sidewalk, he couldn't be sure she would keep her word about not kidnapping anyone. Come to think of it, she hadn't even agreed not to kidnap anyone. Lance was about to rectify this when a familiar voice addressed Mystique.

"Excuse me, ma'am!"

Lance was surprised as he saw Kitty running up to Mystique. It was a cold day and he could see her breath as she panted, running up the driveway to the center.

"You dropped your cell phone earlier." Kitty said with a pleasant smile, not knowing who the simple looking lady in front of her really was.

Lance tensed as Mystique leaned forward and smiled. He couldn't be sure that Mystique wouldn't try anything. Kitty was an X-man, she could easily be a target.

And then Kitty turned her head and saw Lance. "Oh." She said, completely forgetting Mystique. "Hey, Lance."

"Oh, do you two know each other?" Mystique smiled, gazing between the two teenagers.

"We're friends." Lance said slowly.

Kitty nodded. "What are you doing here?" she asked him.

Lance felt like he was being scrutinized under Kitty's gaze. This was his home away from home. True, it had been tainted by Mystique's presence but he had really hoped to keep working here a secret from anyone that knew him. He shot Mystique a glare; somehow he had a feeling she set this up.

"Lance here is one of our best 'big brothers'." Mystique said proudly, as if she actually knew what he did.

Immediately, Lance tried to get her to shut up but Kitty interrupted him. "Big brother?" she asked, looking at the building behind him.

"Yes, here at the recreation center many children come to hang out. But many are also involved in the big brother/sister program, so that someone older can tutor or mentor them. He's never told you?"

"No," Kitty said nervously.

"Well, I'm sure she's really busy so-"

"Are you busy?" Mystique asked Kitty.

"Uh, not really."

Mystique beamed back at Lance. "Lance! Shame on you! I know this place is your pride and joy! Aren't you proud of it?" Lance simply glared at Mystique and she continued on. "Why don't you take some time to show your friend around? I know she'd love it."

Lance glanced at Kitty and sighed when he noticed the interest in her eyes. "Well I-"

"Oh, look at the time." Mystique said, checking her phone. "I have to go, but please feel free to look around. We encourage the whole community to be involved here." And with another smile, she dashed off, leaving the pair in awkward silence.

"So… you work here?" Kitty asked finally.

Lance nodded, taking a deep breath. He didn't know what Mystique's purpose was but he knew that if she brought Kitty here, she probably would get upset at Lance if he ignored her. Shooting Kitty a bright, fake smile he gestured to the building.

"This is the Homemade Youth Recreation center. And usually you need an ID to get in, but if you're with me no one should mind." Kitty thought there was something strange – something forced – about Lance's explanation but she followed him inside. The lady from earlier had not been lying. It was a very community-friendly place with kids everywhere. Every couple of minutes someone waved at Lance proving he was well known here. But Kitty was still feeling that he was forcing all of this. "That room is for arts and crafts; we have someone lead a project with children on Sundays. There's a pool at the end of that hallway. The reading room is in that room, but tomorrow we're actually having a pet show with some animals from the local pet shelter. Hence all of the animal food in the corner."

Kitty followed as he pointed everything out. "So what do you do?" Kitty asked. She had a feeling Lance wasn't a pet show or arts and crafts type of person. "The uh – lady said something about you bringing a brother?"

"Sometimes I give swimming drills." Lance said, gesturing to a bench in the hallway for them to sit. It was awkward at first having Kitty here, but it wasn't that bad. And he found himself opening up easily. "But mostly I'm involved in the big brother/sister program. Basically parents sign their kids up for the whole day and I just take em out, help them with homework, or do community service things that they have here."

They sat in silence for a moment as Kitty looked around. "I appreciate you showing me around and stuff, but if you don't want me being here-"

"What gave you that idea?" Lance asked quickly. In the back of his mind knew Mystique could be watching. He didn't want to make it seem like he was undoing her plan.

"I can tell from your face," Kitty said simply. "That's not a genuine smile."

Lance stood still for a moment, gazing at the petite girl next to him. He wondered how she knew him so well in such a short time. "And of course, you know what all of my genuine smiles look like," he mocked.

"Of course," Kitty laughed. "Whenever you joke with me in school you have this playful smile on your face. The smile you have on right now is more like you're trying to show me how shiny your teeth are." And just like that the tension in his body disappeared. Lance laughed, imagining himself the way Kitty described it. "See? That was real." Lance shook his head, wondering when he would stop being amazed by her. For a moment he had the ridiculous urge to kiss her. "Why don't you want to show me around?" Kitty asked, interrupting his desires.

Lance sighed, doubting she would understand. "It's not that I don't. It's just that I've been working here for about 3 years now. And it's been a secret, you know? I just feel like this place – this one building in the whole world – these people that I make connections with… I feel like if I let the outside world know about it, it'll cease to be as special. Which is probably crazy right?"

"It is a little weird." Kitty said, humor lacing her words. "But I guess this place is kind of like your sanctuary. You probably don't want other people ruining it."

Slowly watching her eyes for permission, Lance leaned toward her and threaded her fingers with his. "Well," he was speaking in a low voice that made butterflies fly around in Kitty's stomach. "I guess I wouldn't mind you being here."

And then his lips were on hers. Kitty's eyes had barely closed when he moved away. Lance had no idea what had warranted that action, but he knew that he wanted more.

"Because if you are, we can do that more often." He said, his lips meeting hers again for another second.

Kitty's heart was hammering so hard she was wondering if he could hear it. _Lance kissed her. Lance wanted to continue kissing her._ "Well you did mention something about a pet show or something. I wouldn't mind coming to see that. You said tomorrow or something?"

Lance thought about it and shook his head and gave her hand a small squeeze. "Oh, sorry. Not tomorrow. I told this pretty girl I was going to meet her at the movies."

Kitty laughed. "Don't tell me you think she's prettier than me."

"Don't know if I can say that."

"You better not." Kitty said.

"Come on," Lance said, pulling Kitty up from the bench. "I'll show around the rest of the place. And this time, I'll try to be more genuine."

"Aright then, lead the way."

* * *

**A/N **YAY! Their first tiny little kiss! Alright folks, make sure you review, I want to know if you enjoyed the chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

_Can it be /that you see/Something beautiful in me_

* * *

Lance frowned as he checked his watch. He was waiting for Kitty to meet him in the park because he couldn't pick her up from the Institute. They movie was due to start in 10 minutes and because he didn't want any of his friends to see them together, Lance had chosen a theater in the next town - which was a good 20 minutes away. Even though Mystique had so "graciously returned" his motorcycle, they wouldn't get there in time.

He checked his phone for the fifth time and finally heard her running up to him.

"Sorry I'm late," Kitty panted, bumping into him. "Logan had me doing stuff. Were you waiting long?"

Lance shrugged and handed her his motorcycle helmet. "Not really. But we might be late to the movies."

"Oh, that's okay." She said, trying to smooth her hair under the helmet. "Rogue said the beginning is boring anyway."

"So you still wanna watch it?"

"Uh, definitely. Bradley Cooper is worth it all."

Lance rolled his eyes as Kitty sat properly behind him. "Bradley Cooper has nothing on Lance Alvers."

Kitty laughed against his shoulder, but her words were muffled by the helmet. Lance quite enjoyed having Kitty with him. Sure, she wasn't his type and she made him smile far too often, but it was a nice change. With his other girlfriends, he enjoyed making out with them or just having a pretty thing on his side. There wasn't much there except for the hormone driven need. There were no thoughts involved.

But with Kitty he relished the feeling of coming up with one-liners to make her smile.

They eventually got to the movie theaters and Kitty almost tripped getting off of the bike. "This thing makes my legs turn to jelly." She said, steading herself.

Lance scoffed and held her by the waist as they paid for the tickets. "You don't do anything."

"Hush you," Kitty chided. "It's only the fourth time I've been on that bike."

"By my fourth time, I was doing wheelies."

"Show off."

They made their way to the back of the theater, Kitty leading Lance in the dark by holding his hand. They sat in silence for the first twenty minutes before Kitty leaned over to whisper at him. "Are you as bored as I am?"

"I stopped watching the movie," he whispered back, his voice laced with humor. "I've been counting the times the lady two rows in front of us makes that weird breathy sound."

Kitty held back a giggle. "And how many have you got so far?"

"Thirteen." He groaned.

"Do you want to leave?" Kitty asked.

Lance gave her a strange look. "You aren't even going to wait for Bradley Cooper to make an appearance?"

Kitty smiled. "Okay, so he isn't totally worth it."

Lance looked at the ceiling and mumbled "Thank God." They both got up quietly, this time Lance leading Kitty out.

"Sorry for dragging you all the way out here for that." Kitty sighed. "So what now? I know you have some activities at the center where you work. Do you wanna just go there?"

"Well actually the pet show I was telling you about got cancelled. So how about something else," Lance said with a smile. He didn't say anything else but quietly led Kitty back to his motorcycle. "This is yours for the next… hmmm let's say 5 minutes."

Kitty gave him a look. "What?"

"Starting now."

"What are you expecting me to do with this?" Kitty asked.

"Get on it, we've got some time to kill."

Kitty gave Lance another wild look. "Yeah, time won't be the only thing we'll be killing if I get on that."

"I thought you came here to have fun."

"I came here because you asked me to-"

"So you could start having some fun." Lance finished for her.

Kitty sighed. "Lance I-"

"And besides. If you hit anything, you can use your powers."

"Lance you aren't seriously-"

"You looked a little guilty when you apologized for dragging me all the way here, but I let it go. But, if you don't try riding my motorcycle I will be truly disappointed. And," he looked down at his watch for a moment before looking back up with a smirk. "Four minutes now."

He shrugged like this was Kitty's fault. Kitty glared at the sky, wondering whose idea this was. "Okay, okay." Taking a gulp, Kitty sat on the motorcycle, adjusting one of her legs on the ground. Immediately Lance's pout disappeared. "What now?"

"Push that button." Lance pointed.

Kitty did as she was told and the death trap roared to life underneath her. She gave Lance a look of terror. "I'm gonna die, aren't I?"

Lance simply barked in laughter and quickly rushed up to put the helmet on her. Kitty lifted the visor up so she could see well. "Kick off, but don't turn the handles at all! And then hold those to press the breaks."

Kitty was sure they'd both lost their minds, but taking a deep breath, she kicked off. The bike lurched forward and Kitty screamed. She didn't go farther than three feet because she pulled on the brakes quickly. The whole world spun around her and Kitty was reminded that motorcycles didn't have seatbelts.

Lance was immediately at her side and she knew he was grinning. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Please tell me it's been five minutes!"

"Three more minutes," Lance laughed, taking a seat behind her. "Alright, go again, and don't press the brakes so hard." His arms rested on her legs, giving Kitty more balance. Taking a deep breath, Kitty let go of the breaks and the bike lurched forward again.

She went slower this time and Lance slowly snaked his right hand over hers. His other hand gripped her thigh and Kitty almost lost her breath. She didn't know what would give her a heart attack first: riding the motorcycle or Lance's body surrounding her so perfectly. Using their bodies for momentum, Lance leaned to the right and they made their way to the more empty part of the parking lot.

"Hold on tight," Lance said in a rush and Kitty barely had a chance to process his words before he pulled handle of the motorcycle and it began to gain speed.

"Oh no no no!" Kitty exclaimed, as Lance leaned to the side again and they went in a circle. The sound of the world rushed past her in a whoosh of air.

"Scared?" Lance smiled, giving her thigh a pinch.

Kitty squirmed and the cycle sped up more. Lance shook with laughter behind her and he slowly pressed on the breaks. Underneath his hands, Kitty's knuckles had gone white.

"It's definitely been five minutes." Kitty said, her arms beginning to grow tired.

Lance sighed and rested closer against Kitty's back. She could feel his lips pressing on her shoulder as he relaxed. But it was just making Kitty's senses spin even more. She wondered if he had any idea what he was doing to her.

"You seriously aren't enjoying this?" Lance asked, halting her thoughts. "Please tell me your eyes aren't closed."

Kitty thought about it for a moment. In the beginning, she was sure she was going to die. But now…

"Just push the breaks if you want," he mumbled, his hand over hers again.

But Kitty surprised him by speeding up. It wasn't much, and he was pretty sure she wasn't entirely sure what she was doing. But at least it was a start. He rested his head against her back as she continued to drive slowly through the parking lot. He had only known Kitty for a couple of months now, but he felt unexplainably comfortable around her. He wouldn't have cared if they spent the whole day like this.

Kitty sighed in happiness as Lance shifted even closer against her. The air was predictably chilly for November, but with Lance behind her, Kitty didn't feel it at all. All she cared about was the blur of colors as she passed by parking lots and the feel of Lance's body next to hers.

And then she took a moment to think about _what_ she was feeling. She trusted Lance. She had allowed him to take her to that carnival, she had checked up on him in school, and here she was again with him. And besides feeling totally at ease with him on this deathtrap that he called transportation, she felt the need to kiss him.

Kitty gulped. This was bad. She knew she liked Lance. He was always making her laugh and being near him just made her feel so – _alive._ And now she wanted to kiss him. This was bad. Just how much did she like him?

Lance felt Kitty tense as she pressed on the breaks and slowly halted his bike. "Something wrong?" Lance asked.

"Ah, no. I just I'm pretty sure five minutes are over."

Lance could tell from her voice that she was thinking about something, but Kitty had put the visor over the helmet again, blocking him from seeing her eyes. He nodded, halting the bike and Kitty got off.

"Why don't you go wait in BJ's?" Lance said, pointing to the restaurant. "I'll meet you there in a second."

Kitty nodded, handing him back the helmet and avoiding his gaze. She sat on the benches outside of the restaurant, willing her mind not to think about Lance. Not to think about the way his laugh sounded. Not to think about how her heart hammered whenever he was around. Not to think about how much she was growing attached to him.

"Ah, dammit." Kitty muttered, rubbing her eyes. She was brimming with energy from the motorcycle and now her mind was on overdrive. "I'm going to drive myself crazy hanging out with this guy."

The worst thing about all this was when Kitty was looking at her phone, she longed to tell someone about what she was feeling. She needed to hear Rogue's discouraging tone to remind her that she shouldn't be feeling anything for Lance. It wouldn't do her any good. But unfortunately Rogue knew nothing of this. No one did. It was just Kitty and Lance.

Kitty was still thinking about this as Lance appeared and led her inside.

"So does anyone know we're hanging out together?" Kitty asked, once they'd been seated.

Lance snorted. "No way."

"Okay, that's good." Kitty straightened up and her eyes moved to the menu.

"Why? Do you want someone to know?" Lance asked, thinking there was something odd in her response.

Kitty shook her head. "Not like there's much to tell, anyway. We're just two friends."

"Yeah," Lance shrugged. "Just two friends who used to hate each other's guts a few months ago."

"You act like you make it hard not to hate your guts."

"You're crazy." Lance said, smirking. "I'm a very charming guy."

"Mhmm. You never even noticed me until this year. Speaking of which, I'm still trying to figure out why."

"Why it took me all these years to notice you?"

"Yeah." Kitty said, laying her menu down.

"I've always noticed you," Lance lied, still scanning the menu.

Kitty laughed. "You don't have to say sweet nothings to me, Mr. Charming. We're friends now. Unlike you, I'll be here regardless of whether you're boosting my ego or not."

Something in Lance tugged at her words. Here she was, smiling with innocence because she thought he was interested in her. The truth was, if not for Mystique he might have never become so involved with her. And Kitty clearly knew that something was amiss about his explanation, but she was still offering to be his friend – a permanent friend at that. He hated that she was so naïve, but he also relished it. He enjoyed having Kitty as a friend.

"I bet you won't enjoying being my friend so much when I take you motorcycle racing."

Kitty's serious face returned. "I will not be motorcycle racing with you."

Lance put his menu down and smirked. "You say that now. But just you wait."

"No. No way."

Lance shrugged. "I'm just telling you now so you can start preparing."

"Lance I am not. Do you hear me?"

"Loud and clear but I might forget by then."

"Oh, but you won't forget that there will be a race?"

"You didn't die today, right?"

"Yeah, but that was because you were there-"

"And I'll be there during the race. Just… on the sidelines."

"Lance I swear-"

"Good evening," said a man in a green tie, appearing at their table. "Here are the root beers you ordered. My name is Dan, and I will be your server for the evening. Are you ready to order?"

Kitty gave Lance a glare as he said his order. "I'll start with the mozzarella and tomato salad and then the southern fried grilled chicken please."

"Alright, I'll bring those shortly."

"Thank you," Lance said, plucking the menu out of Kitty's hands once she'd ordered. "So, what were you saying about us being friends now?"

"If you think you can just weasel out of-"

"Just answer the question, Kitty." Kitty sipped on her root beer in response. "See, I knew you wouldn't want to-"

"Oh, shut up." Kitty sighed. "Yeah, we're friends you fool."

"Good, and you said you'd be by my side? As in you'd help me out if anything ever happened?"

Kitty gave him a suspicious look. "Uh, yeah I guess."

"So say I signed up for a motorcycle race, and I had a lot riding on me to win. Suppose I got injured, or sick and I couldn't make it-" Kitty groaned. "So, as my friend, could I count on you to help me out?"

"Hell no."

"Well, aren't you a great friend." Lance sighed. "See, I knew I had to butter you up with 'sweet nothings'."

Kitty rolled her eyes as their entrees arrived. They ate in silence for a moment before Kitty cleared her throat. "So, we didn't just come here for entertainment or free motorcycle lesson rides."

Lance snorted. "You could've fooled me."

"A. Me riding the motorcycle was your idea-"

"And don't deny you enjoyed it. Or is there something else you want to ride?" Lance raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"Shut up," Kitty said, with a laugh. "Stop trying to change the subject. And B… Shit, what was my second point?"

"Probably something about how you're such a bad friend."

"Wow you've got this whole charming attitude down perfectly."

"Thank you," Lance smirked.

"But whatever. What I'm trying to get at is that you invited me to the movies because I asked you what happened to your arm earlier this week."

Lance took a swing of root beer before checking his arm. "Looks fine to me."

"Lance." He sighed before taking a last bite of his mashed potatoes. "You said you'd tell me what happened to your arm. And don't tell me it was a motorcycle accident."

"It wasn't a motorcycle accident." Lance said, looking away.

"Okay, so… what?"

"I uh- I was thrown out of my window." He glanced back at Kitty through his bangs. "But now that I say it, it seems kind of ridiculous."

"It does," Kitty agreed. "Can you be serious, please?"

"Why do you care so much?" Lance asked.

Kitty waved his question away. "I came with you to the movies, now tell me."

Lance sighed, and decided to continue his story. "I'm serious about the being thrown out of a window part. It was Mystique."

"And here is the main course," Their waiter said, appearing out of nowhere. Lance gave him a grateful look but Kitty was focused on the man in front of her.

He was sure Mystique would find out what he was saying and give him hell later. But realizing that Kitty considered him a friend made him want to tell her the truth. Kitty, however was not calmed by his words. She still remembered the bruises on his face and the pain in his voice the day she had cornered him. "Enjoy."

It was quiet for a moment as the two stared at each other, the food at the back of their minds.

"Why did she do that?" Kitty hoped that Lance would just admit to her insanity - but his explanation was a little bit more complicated. And made her loose a little bit of faith in him.

"I uh – I owe her a favor and it's not happening the way she wants. You know how she is with her anger." Lance spoke casually, avoiding Kitty's eyes.

"But throwing you out of a window? That's crazy! Tell me you gave her hell."

Lance was surprised by Kitty words. He looked up, and instead of finding confusion, he found anger in her eyes. Like she was upset that Mystique had hurt him. "I – yeah I tried. But I didn't really do much."

Kitty snorted and began to cut into her food. "I wish someone would throw me out of a window. I'd set them straight."

"Why do I have a feeling that, if you were there with me that night, you would have hauled Mystique back up to the roof and thrown her off?"

"Damn right, I would." Kitty nodded, looking up to see Lance smiling at her. "What?" she asked.

Lance looked away, back to his food, but his smile didn't falter. "Nothing."

* * *

Make sure to review with your opinions my dear readers!


	8. Chapter 8

_Oh it sounds too good to be true/What I hear about you_

Lance turned around on his motor bike to face Kitty, and she tried not to blush when she realized she was two inches away from straddling his lap.

"So uh, do you still do favors for Mystique?" she asked, their earlier conversation coming to her mind. Her brain always found a way of short circuiting when Lance was so close.

Lance cleared his throat, surprised by her question. "Um, that depends."

"On?"

"She has this really bad habit about blackmailing people. That's why I was lucky that all she did last time was throw me out of a window." Lance laughed.

"Well, just get rid of the things she can blackmail you with." Kitty said simply. "That's what Professor X did. No secret is worth having someone hold it over you as a bargaining chip."

"Yeah… It's not that simple for me."

"Why not?" Kitty asked.

Lance smiled, reaching his hand up to brush her cheek. "She uses people close to me to blackmail me."

"Oh," Kitty said, suddenly understanding. "W-well just make her think that I – I mean _people_ aren't that important to you."

"I don't think I want to," Lance said leaning closer to Kitty. "I think I enjoy spending time with certain _people_. I'm not going to let Mystique have control over that."

Kitty smiled, her eyes flickering now from Lance's lips to his eyes. "Yeah, well next time she tries to blackmail you, send her to me. I know several good windows to throw her out from."

Lance was about to say something about getting to see her bedroom window when Kitty's phone began to buzz.

"Yeah, Kurt?" she sighed, getting off of the motorcycle. Lance watched as her facial expression changed from annoyed to more annoyed. "Ugh, really? Okay. No, I'm home, I'll get him. Yeah, bye. Sorry," she said turning back to Lance. "I – uh I have to go."

"I understand."

Kitty looked like she was fighting her thoughts whether to leave him or not. "Let's hang out soon."

"Sure," he said. "You know we do have that one class together. And I can always skip my class to see you during lunch."

Kitty shook her head. "Don't you think I'll get tired of you?"

"Nah, no one ever tires of me."

Kitty rolled her eyes and stepped away. "You keep telling yourself that, Lance."

* * *

The next day found Lance talking to Mystique in the Principal's office after lunch.

"She trusts me," Lance repeated. "I'll get you what you want soon."

"There's only so much time until February."

Lance nodded and then cleared his throat. "When everything goes to hell once you get inside the institute I want you to leave her out of it."

"Excuse me?"

"Kitty. You can go after all of them and – and do what you need to. But I'm doing this for you and you better not hurt her. All right?"

Mystique narrowed her eyes at the boy in front of her. "Don't pretend that you actually care for her now."

"Shut up," Lance said, getting up. His dreams had been haunted recently by a battered Kitty and Mystique's low laughter in the background. He did not want it to come true.

"I won't promise anything." Mystique said quietly. "But if she is in my way, I will deal with her like I deal with everyone."

"And if I can keep her from interfering?"

"Then… she'll be fine."

With one last look at the sneaky woman, Lance shut the door behind him. It didn't bother him that he was helping Mystique wreak havoc on the X-men. If she wasn't black mailing him, she would definitely find another way into the institute. No, the only thing that bothered Lance was that Kitty not be there when it happened.

"What's that look for?" Pietro asked as Lance opened his locker.

"Life."

"You still haven't told us what Mystique's got you doing. Thinking I should just go ask her myself."

"What's always been her plan, Pietro?"

"Bash in Xavier's head?"

Lance nodded, wincing a little as an image of that popped into his head.

"And how are you helping with that?"

"Go ask her yourself." Lance said, shutting his locker in annoyance.

Pietro huffed, but continued after his friend. "You know the X-men won't back down."

"I know,"

"So… You aren't helping with the actual act of bashing in the old man's head?"

Lance glared at his blond friend. "Say that a _little_ louder, why don't you?"

"What? The fact that you aren't is a good thing. Well, to the X-men getting her in is just as bad as hurting the old dude, but-"

"Speaking of the X-men," Lance said, trying to move the conversation in a public friendly discussion. "Do you still have that crush on Kitty?"

"The short girl?" Pietro asked, making a face. "No."

Lance knew he was lying, but smiled. "Good, because I'm asking her out on another date."

"Another date?" Pietro mumbled, wide-eyed.

"Did you say something?" Lance asked.

"Uh – She isn't really your type, is she? She not one of those brainless girls who are just looking for someone to kiss all the time."

"No, she isn't." Lance nodded, eyeing her at the end of the hallway. He knew on a normal day he would've glanced right past her. And on a normal day he wouldn't smile at the sight of her just laughing – but here he was, trying to force down the smile on his face. "She's much better." She was at her locker, and after Lance made sure no X-men were around he slung and arm around her shoulders. From the corner of his eye, he saw Pietro leave.

"Hey, Lance." She said, shifting into his embrace without looking away from the person she was talking to.

This annoyed Lance, as he was so used to Kitty giving _him_ her attention. While she continued talking, Lance ran his hand along her waist and grabbed her phone from her pocket. Kitty could begin to feel her heart pound even faster, but she refused to look at Lance. Hearing his huff of irritation behind her was amusing.

After what seemed like an agonizing amount of eternity to Lance, Kitty's friend left and she finally turned to look at him. "You're still here?" she asked, feigning a calm voice. "What were you doing on my phone the entire time?"

"Trying to figure out the best emojis to put beside my name."

Kitty smiled and looked through her contacts to see what he had put in. "You could've looked through it and taken down anyone's number you wanted."

"First of all, you X-men are deluded – none of you are as important as you think. Second, then why didn't you take it away from me?"

Kitty looked up from her phone and smiled. "I trust you." Lance felt bad because he had sneaked some of the contacts on her phone in case they would be helpful to Mystique. He pressed his lips to the skin beneath her ear to distract her from asking any more questions. "You weren't at my lunch today," she said finally, pocketing the phone.

"I knew you'd miss me."

Kitty smiled and rested her hand on his chest. "And if I did?"

Goosebumps fanned across Lance's arms as she trailed her hand lower and then back up again. "Well then I'd say you're deserving of having my number in your phone. Next time just text me." Kitty nodded, pulling her hand away when the bell rang. "And here I thought you were in the mood to skip class."

"Not today, Lance. I've got a test." When he pouted, Kitty laughed and turned him around. "You've got a class too, Mister. Now, go. We'll hang out later."

"When?" Lance asked, turning back to Kitty – the opposite direction of his class.

Kitty thought he resembled a lost puppy. "Just text me."

"Oh, that's very original." Lance rolled his eyes and headed to class, Kitty's giggling following him down the hall.

* * *

Kitty was in the middle of getting Jean an ice pack when her phone chimed in her pocket.

Lance's name appeared followed by several emojis of the sunglasses face. Kitty bit her lip to keep from grinning widely.

L: Now accepting ideas for emojis to put next to your name

K: I would've thought the cat emojis would be your first choice

L: Yeah *scared cat emoji* – that's how you looked on the motorcycle.

This time Kitty laughed out loud. Logan glared at her, looking up from his dinner. Kitty quickly grabbed an ice pack for her friend and headed to her room for privacy.

K: You know I looked like this. *Sunglasses guy emoji*

L: Nope, you were definitely screaming like this *scared cat emoji*

K: You couldn't have seen my face though. You were sitting behind me

L: I have mirrors on the motorcycle

K: And here I thought you were paying attention to the road

L: I like paying attention to you more

Kitty smiled as butterflies danced around in her stomach. She wasn't much of a texting person – but then again after her last relationship she hadn't talked to guys in a long time.

K: Flattery will only result in us crushed underneath your motorcycle

L: That's one way to get you on top of me

K: That's the only way it'll ever happen.

Kitty laughed aloud again, feeling her face heat up. Rogue – who shared the room with her, chose this moment to walk in. "Who's that?"

"Um, just a friend."

"Is he cute?" Rogue asked, suddenly plopping down on Kitty's bed.

Kitty exited out of the thread before Rogue could read any of it. Kitty shrugged, gathering her homework and phone charger to take downstairs. "Don't think you'd approve."

"Why not? And where are you going?"

"Mmmm, he's a little scruffy. And I'm going down stairs – there's better reception." Kitty lied.

"What do you mean by scruffy?" Rogue asked, fortunately not following Kitty.

Kitty gave Rogue a smile as her phone chirped again. "He… he's just not the typical preppy high collar guy I pay attention to. Now if you'll excuse me this homework isn't going to do itself."

"You mean those messages aren't going to answer themselves." Rogue laughed.

Kitty stuck her tongue out at her friend before finding a comfortable sofa downstairs. She curled up with her homework in her lap and her phone on her left. Trying not to be too distracted, Kitty finished one subject before looking at her phone. There was only one message.

L: Challenge accepted!

K: There's no way you'll get me on that bike again

L: We'll see.

K: So when did you start driving that death trap anyway?

Kitty ended up neglecting her homework all together while learning all about Lance's precious mode of transportation. Rogue found her two hours later dozing on the sofa with her phone in her hand. Curious, she leaned over Kitty's shoulder to see if there were any notifications. It seemed like the conversation had ended before Rogue arrived because there was nothing on the lock screen.

Sighing, she shook Kitty awake and teased her about her "scruffy mystery man" as they walked back to their room.

* * *

"Come on, Kitty! You were on your phone the whole ride here! Who's so important?"

Kitty gave Kurt another glare as she bit through her pizza. Recently, Professor X had located a new mutant in Maryland with the ability to astral project. They had been using it to sneak up on people, and Jean was afraid they might use it for other unnecessary activities aka crime sprees. Currently, they had arrived in Maryland and stopped for an early lunch before continuing on the road trip.

There was much more snow on the east coast than their small town and Kitty had been texting Lance, convincing him to get a snapchat so he could see it too. But Kurt could only discuss so many things with Logan, Bobby, and Rogue – so now he turned his attention to her.

"Still talking to that guy you were texting on Monday?" Rogue asked, butting in.

Kitty glared at her, glad her phone battery had died so they couldn't steal it from her. "Rogue, you're supposed to help me."

"A guy?" Kurt made a face. "When did you get a boyfriend?"

"He's not my boyfriend, you guys! Stop like-"

"I bet they've kissed." Rogue said, with a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

Kitty looked away, remembering the small kiss weeks ago. "Rogue there's no way you could-"

"Ha! She didn't even deny it."

Kurt still had a very confused look on his face. "Is this the only thing you girls talk about?"

"I don't need to deny it! I can do what I want."

"Say what now?" Rogue exclaimed leaning in for more details. Kitty stuffed some pizza in her mouth before she spilled anything else. Rogue reached for Kitty's phone and frowned when it didn't turn on. "Killjoy." She huffed.

Nearby, Logan was on the phone and abruptly hung up. "Alright you four, back in the car. We've got to get going."

"What happened?" Bobby asked, sensing Logan's mood.

"The boy knows we're coming for him."

"What? How?"

"He projected into Jean's dream or something." Logan as they all piled into the car.

"And she let him?" Kitty asked. "Jean usually has super control of her powers – someone getting in her head these days is like totally rare."

"Well we don't know everything about this guy. He could've surprised Jean."

"But Jean's like three states away-"

Logan nodded. "That's what worries me."

...

The arrived at the home in Laurel around 4 pm. School had just been let out and no parents were home. They sent Kurt in first, to check if anyone was at home. Once they knew where he was, Kurt and Bobby waited at the back door, and Logan knocked on the front, Rogue and Kitty patiently behind him.

The blond boy was no more than 12 years old and opened the door with narrowed eyes. "I know who you are."

"Well that's funny. Seeing as we've never met." Logan's voice was gruff, and Kitty wondered if the boy was scared at all. She knew she would be.

Instead, he smirked. "You're in that red haired girl's dreams some times." Kitty's mouth fell open as the boy looked behind Logan.

"You know most people don't like strangers dropping into their dreams." Logan said, with a sour expression.

Fred shrugged. "What do you guys want?"

"We just want to talk to you." Rogue said. "About your powers."

After disabling something on a security pad, the boy nodded. "And tell those two by the back door to come inside too." Kitty smiled and texted Kurt to come inside. The boy introduced himself as Fred Ancer, and let them to the living room.

After explaining to him why they were here, Logan left to make a call to Professor Xavier. Bobby, Kurt and Kitty showed Fred their powers while Rogue watched from the hallway.

"So you could eat the chips from a bag without ever opening it?" Fred asked Kitty.

She laughed. "Yes, taking food without opening the bag is easy."

"So, do your parents know what you can do?" Bobby asked, while making a miniature ice sculpture of an elephant.

Fred nodded. "Dad can do the same thing as me. But he said to never tell normal people."

"And you've never told anyone?"

"Nope. Dad says people will get scared."

"Your dad's right." Rogue said, taking a seat. "But what part of your powers does he share? The dropping into people's dreams or the astral projection?"

"They're the same power actually." Fred said. "When I'm sleeping, I can do it too. One time I think I went into the dream of a frog!"

Kurt gave him an alarmed look as Logan came back. "You probably shouldn't do it anymore." Kitty said. "At least not into the dreams of animals."

Fred nodded, and rushed to put the finished ice sculpture in the freezer. "Xavier already talked to his parents." Logan said. "And we've said all we can to the kid, but his parents would prefer him to stay here."

"Does the Professor also know that his father has the same power?" Rogue asked.

"He didn't say anything about that, but I guess the old man is better at hiding it than a young kid. I'll tell Xavier when we get back." Then he turned his attention to Fred. "Well, it's time for us to go. It was nice talking to you, kid."

"Didn't the Professor say you should learn to be more open to kids, Logan?" Kurt called after him with a laugh. Logan glared, but continued to the car. The rest of the group said their goodbyes in a kinder manner, and Kurt promised to visit – Fred had taken a liking to him because their powers were so similar.

When they all got in the car, the complaining began.

"Come on!" Bobby urged, "We're only half an hour away from D.C. Let's go exploring! When are we going to come here again?"

"I'm not in the mood to drive in the night." Logan said. "It's supposed to start snowing back in New York soon."

"I'll transport the whole car back to the institute!" Kurt said. "So you don't have to drive."

Logan gave him a skeptical look. "Are you sure you can transport all of us _and the car_ back home three states away?"

"I can try. I'll probably do the car separately and then two of you guys at a time."

"Come on, Logan!" Kitty urged.

"Do any of you even know how to get to D.C.?" Logan asked after a moment of deliberation.

Rogue opened the GPS app in her phone. "White house, here we come."

* * *

Lance was running late as usual as he grabbed some cereal for breakfast. Thankfully, he had done the grocery shopping this week so it was something he'd enjoy. He replying back to a text message from Kitty when Pietro stopped to look at him.

"Are you smiling?" he asked.

Lance stopped mid-sentence and turned his attention to the cereal. "What are you talking about?"

"You were smiling."

"Yeah, I do that. And sometimes, I even laugh." The other two occupants of the house had already left the house earlier and Lance's sarcasm echoed throughout the silent house.

"No need to get angry, I was just saying."

Lance's phone beeped, but he ignored it. "Am I not allowed to smile now?" He asked.

"Man, I don't care." Pietro stepped out of the room and pretended to leave. When Lance thought he was gone, he picked up his phone and continued texting Kitty. Just as Pietro expected, a smile fell on his friend's face again. He stepped back in the room and looked around like he forgot something. "You're smiling again."

This time Lance's smile didn't change. "Are you going to let me eat in peace?" he asked, not looking up.

"So who are you messaging? Sandra? Debbie? Kate?"

"Why are you still here?"

"Well, whoever it is, don't mess it up with her."

"If you don't leave right now-"

Pietro laughed, and there was a small gust of wind as he sped out of the house. Lance paused before sending the next message as he looked at the reflection of his smile in the phone screen. He didn't remember having a conversation via text that lasted from nightfall until the next day. And he couldn't remember smiling for a simple reason as a text message. But it wasn't because of anything special – it was just that Kitty made a point of trying to prove him wrong… and it always ended unsuccessfully. It was just amusing that she still believed that he would admit that he was wrong. He didn't know what Pietro was thinking.

And then it hit him. Pietro was just messing with his head. He was allowed to smile – it wasn't anything big. His phone beeped again but Kitty's name didn't flash. Deciding that sitting here and thinking about Pietro's words was going to result in nothing he gathered his things and headed for school.

* * *

**A/N: **Hello readers! Thank you for reading another chapter! Until 10 minutes ago, I was still adding on to this chapter, but it was getting to be 5K words and I already had so many different things in this chapter - so I thought I'd just hold off on Kitty's part that mirror's Lance's in the last section (goddamn why is this sentence so long). Anyway, I was really hesitant about putting the texting in there, that's why I haven't updated for so long (my anxiety will be the death of me, I swear).

Tell me what you think, especially criticism. I know this chapter is jumping around a lot - much like Lance and Kitty's "relationship" - but that's just the way the cookie bakes.

Review please!


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